The Seducing Sky
by InsanityPushedMeOffTheEdge
Summary: When Amami died she wasn't particularly bothered about it. When given the chance to be replace Sawada Tsunayoshi in the KHR world she takes it. From early on Amami decided that she wasn't going to be one of those fretful ocs who always worried about changing the storyline. No, she was going to go with the flow and steadily amass a harem of KHR Bishies while she was at it.
1. Prologue

Ohayo and welcome to the seducing sky~ hope you like it. The plot basically slapped me in the face and refused to leave until I wrote this. And as something new, I shall give you my favourite quote of the day.

"Its Howdedoodie time. Bitch" – Kankuro to Konohamaru in Naruto Abridged

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR or Naruto Abridged!**

Prologue

I blinked as I peered into the all-consuming darkness around me. Well shit, I've obviously just died. But unfortunately, this isn't heaven, hell, purgatory, soul society... So, where the hell was I? What was I supposed to do? Is this someplace for people to mourn their death or something? Because to be honest, I'm not really bothered about dying. It was going to happen eventually. After mulling it over for a while I decided to occupy myself by going over my how I died.

_Flashback:_

_I grimaced as I walked down the dingy, rat-infested alleyway towards my home. You see, I was an orphan and as such, I used to be ridiculously poor. Like all stereo - typical kids from the ghetto, I joined the local gang. It was just a way to get some cash (usually illegally). It wasn't easy, for females in gang life; rape was an obvious concern. It wasn't just the threat of rape though. All gangs were vicious and cruel when dealing with the enemy. I've been in many situations where torture and murder has occurred; both on the side of the victim as well as the persecutor. After some time, everything that I had seen, along with what I had done, made me slightly sadistic. I also learned many things, most predominately was learning how to trick and seduce my enemies. It was my way of surviving; out here it's every man for himself. If you want someone to watch your back then you have to prove that you're useful to have around. To have allies you have to be good at whatever you do and after many a near death situations, I became the best. To be blunt, I was a seductress in nature and I fine-tuned that skill for turning precarious situations into my favour. I was also an incredible actress, I had to be; when spying on an enemy gang or lying to the police, there was no room for mistake._

_Growing up in the ghetto had forced me to mature quickly, plus it had stopped me from getting attached to any materialistic possession because my home would most likely be broken into at least once a fortnight, despite this I had a deep love for anime. In particular, I loved animes like Kuroshitsuji and Deadman Wonderland. The dark tones in them just make it all seem so much more realistic. I mean, no offence to Naruto because the Shippuden was amazing but when he was younger, he was stupid. In reality the loudest ninja dies, end of story._

_Anyway getting back on track, I froze when I sensed another presence in the damp alley, multiple presences actually. I prepared myself for the oncoming battle as the enemies took a few steps towards me. I slipped eight throwing knives out of my sleeves, I didn't wait for any words to be said, I just jumped forward and began a deadly dance with my five opponents._

_After a while I had killed off two and had raised my arm to slash at the third, __**'Bang!'**__ My chest felt numb. An annoying smirk formed on the fool in front of me. I narrowed my eyes at the smug bastard and slashed downwards with my arm, the surprised look on his face resulted in my lips turning up into a happy grin, filled with bloodlust as I fell forward with a quiet thud and died._

I sighed as I once again looked around in the black abyss. I'll repeat that I wasn't sad about my death. The fact that I had killed the dumb fuck meant I had gone down with a smile on my face.

Seemingly coming from nowhere, a bright light started flying towards me. I stared at it, patiently waiting for it to reach me. Turns out it was a transparent screen giving off a white glow. The screen seemed to blur slightly, but it cleared up and words formed.

-_You have been chosen to be reborn, please fill in the answer to all questions. Then you shall be rebirthed as the main character of the world you have chosen_.-

I shrugged and pressed begin, the words blurred again before clearing once more.

_-Please type in your preferred world._-

I hesitated for a moment, Naruto's out because I can't stand the beginning, One Piece would be good but I prefer having my feet on the ground thank you very is hilarious but I want something more serious. I debated a few others like Eyeshield 21, Kuroshitsuji and Soul Eater but in the end, I typed in Katekyo Hitman Reborn. It was perfect, lots of action and violence, I was slightly obsessive about it and thus, knew the whole storyline.

-_Would you like to have your memories of before your rebirth?-_

I quickly pressed yes, if I'm going to KHR I want to know the damn plot.

_-Is there anything specific about yourself you would like to change?_-

This time lots of bars blurred into life; you were supposed to drag the bar of a specific skill up and down to confirm how much said skill came naturally to you. For example, if I filled the bar for swimming then I would take to water like a fish, if I dragged it down then I would probably be as bad as Tsuna. I was kind of surprised though. This basically meant you had the opportunity to give yourself multiple advantages. So with haste I moved up the bar for cognitive abilities, fitness and a couple others. I didn't move too many bars because then it would be like cheating and really rather boring if I was absolutely amazing at everything I did. I also didn't completely fill any bar but cognitive abilities, just to challenge myself a bit. I flicked the done button, the bars faded away and the words eventually cleared up enough to read

-_Congratulations, you shall now be reborn. – _

Then, I blacked out.

I woke up to a sharp pain in my backside. When the pain flared again I started to furiously wriggle in an attempt to get away from whatever it was that caused it. "Don't worry Mrs Sawada, your baby isn't a stillborn but later we shall have to check her vocal cords for any problems as it is rather unusual for a baby not to wail when tested." There was a sigh of relief and the sound of rustling as I was placed into what I assumed to be a warm pair of arms. Slowly I opened my eyes, consequently coming face to face with a giant Nana '_well I am a baby right now so that's probably why she's the size of the BFG.'_

She had a look of utter love and adoration in her eyes and the tired but happy smile on her face prompted me to give her a smile of my own. Granted I was a new-born and therefore it probably came out crooked but Nana didn't seem to mind as her smile just got wider. She began cooing at me, about how much she loved me and how adorable I was. She was interrupted when a grinning Iemitsu came into view.

"Nana" he breathed.

"She's amazing, incredible, beautiful. I can't tell you how happy I am right now."

Nana laughed lightly as tears of happiness collected around her eyes.

"Well?" She asked.

"What should we name her?"

"Hmm Tsunayoshi is too boyish and Tsunami just doesn't suit her."

Nana nodded in agreement, for a while everything was silent as they thought of new names. "I've got it!" Nana snapped her fingers.

"How about Amami, Ami for short!" Nana grinned, pleased with herself while Iemitsu seemed to pale slightly but nevertheless nodded. I on the other hand was horribly amused.

'_Amami… the beautiful sky eh?'_


	2. An Odd Choice In Pet And A Pretty Temper

Sup! Ready for the second instalment of The Seducing Sky?

Reborn: Baka-author you do realise they can't answer you?

Me: *huffs* Well that doesn't mean I can't talk to myself!

Favourite quote of the day –

"Thanks for the flames. Now get your ass ready for a hot fisting!" – Natsu to Bora in Fairy Tail Abridged

**Disclaimer: I don't own KHR!**

Chapter One- An Odd Choice In Pets And A Pretty Temper

Time skip- Amami is four Years Old  


I smiled as I heard Nana's voice announce that dinner was ready. I put down the large book I was reading and began to head down the stairs; it was entitled _Advanced Mechanics: The ins and outs of all machines._

If you're wondering why I was reading such a thing, it's because when I first came to the KHR world I decided that I was going to do whatever I wanted, messing up the plot be damned. Unfortunately, being a baby and all (now upgraded to toddler,) I couldn't do much, resulting in me becoming so insufferably bored that I began to read anything I could get my chubby little hands on. Surprisingly, with my brain's new capabilities, I soaked up everything like a sponge. I can now assemble and disassemble a computer and car engine (in theory as I haven't been able to get either yet,) I can fluently speak both English and Japanese and am planning to learn Italian soon; I also have a complete understanding of the anatomy of the human body. This may all seem a bit much, considering I'm four years old but I _did_ fill up the bar for cognitive abilities, so it's not too far a stretch to believe it.

Entering the dining room, I gave a small smile to Nana as she bustled around, setting the table. I sat down as she put my plate in front of me, I reached for my cutlery but froze when I saw the overwhelmingly bright smile on Nana's face; yes, it was sweet but there was a worrying bit of mischievousness in it that made me narrow my eyes in suspicion.

"What's up Mum? Why're you so happy?" Curiosity laced my tone.

"Oh Ami-chan! Don't you remember? Today is your first day at nursery! I can't wait to see what friends you make!"

I groaned and hit my head on the table, as I was mentally older than my body the idea of hanging around with a bunch of snotty brats _did not _appeal to me in any which way.

"I wouldn't get your hopes up if I was you Mama." Nana frowned.

"But Ami-chan! I can't help but want you to have lots of friends, as a baby you never really interacted with the others during any playdates. I at least want to see you with one friend! It won't be too bad!"

I sighed,

"I'll try okay Mama?" Nana squealed in delight.

"That's the right attitude! Now hurry up and eat before we're late!"

I sighed once more before digging into my full English breakfast; I finished it quickly, hoping to read another chapter in my book before I was forced to leave. I had no such luck as Nana re-entered the dining room just as I finished.

* * *

I looked around at all the other children. The ones my age were bawling along with their parents about not wanting to separate, while the slightly older ones were somewhat sniffy but obviously having gone through the procedure already, they just grinned at their parents before taking off in a sprint towards the school or their nearest friend. I turned back towards Nana; I could tell that she was trying (unsuccessfully) to not cry her eyes out. I gave her a reassuring smile and hug before I took off in a steady trot towards the school.

I grimaced as I glanced around the classroom. Children were either talking their little mouths off or still wailing from the oh-so-sad absence of their parents. Inspecting the room a little deeper I noticed that the very back table was devoid of any troublesome tots. I quickly hurried towards it and sat in the chair furthest from the teacher. I laid my head on the table and fell asleep, content to nap the day away.

My eyes snapped open when the teacher announced lunchtime, I waited for the horde of children to push and shove their way out before leaving myself.

I stretched as I walked towards a big tree towards the further end of the playground. I stopped when I noticed a boy sat there.

"Hello, I'm Sawada Amami and you are?"

He eyed me for a few moments, as if debating whether or not he should answer. Eventually he grunted out a response.

"Hibari Kyoya."

I sat down next to him, thrilled with this new development. He tensed slightly, obviously disliking the idea of some random child sitting next to him.

"Ne would you like some of my lunch? I can see that you don't have any." I held out my homemade bento towards him, he slowly took a piece, not bothering to reply to my question. Smiling at him one more time, I promptly fell asleep by his side. What! I like naps okay?!

Hibari's Pov

It has been going on for about a week now. Every lunchtime that strange herbivore would approach me with no fear whatsoever, offer me her lunch then fall asleep beside me. Looking over at her sleeping face I took note of her looks. She had long, lightly wavy, waist-length crimson-red hair and even though they were closed I knew her eyes were a deep ocean blue. She also had a cute, button nose with pouty, full lips the colour of blood.

She confused me to no end. Did she not know how dangerous I was? No, that couldn't be it; I've seen other children try to warn her about me but she just ignores them. I continued to stare at the sleeping female. Maybe she comes over because even though she knows I could hurt her but doesn't care? I smirked at my epiphany; if that was so then she most definitely wasn't a normal herbivore.

_Brriiiiiiiing_

The playground bell rang, signalling for all the children to come back inside. I poked the non-herbivore. When she finally woke up she let out an adorable yawn and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes like a kitten. She looks like a little animal, a baby kitty or fox. Taking that into consideration, I decided that from now on she was to be my pet.

"Pet. Wake up, it's time to go back." I turned around and walked off before she could reply.

* * *

~Le Time Skip~Amami's Pov

It's been about two years since I became Kyoya's 'pet'. It came as a surprise at first but in the end I decided I didn't really care; anything would be better than how Kyoya treated Tsuna in the original canon version.

I am now six years old and currently on a plane to Italy with my dearest 'Papa.' How you ask? Well that's easy! Having met Timoteo a couple years before, when Iemitsu came round for a couple days all that was needed was a few tears from both me and Nana accompanied with pitiful begs about wanting to see my Oji-chan again, and Voila! He succumbed to my tearful face. Luckily for me Nana isn't coming onto this trip, it would've been much harder for me to sneak around with Nana constantly at my side.

When I finally arrived to the Vongola mansion my jaw dropped open. It's frickin huge! I mean I know Vongola are rich but damn not that rich! It's so big that I can't even see the end of either side.

"Now Amami my amazing, beautiful daughter, during your stay you are to remain in your room at all times unless I come to get you okay?" I pouted at him.

"But Papa that's boring!"

"I know but do it for Papa kay?~"

I hmphed

"Fine Iemitsu."

"Eeeeh, what happened to Papa?!" He cried a waterfall of tears anime style. I just turned around and ignored his cries of 'call me Papa again please!' it didn't matter what he said to me anyway, there's no way I'm going to pass on an opportunity to explore the Vongola mansion.

It was three days before I managed to find a chance to escape. The first two days had been filled with introductions to Timoteo, Timoteo's guardians and a censored tour of the building. Now though, Iemitsu said he had to work and wouldn't be back for some time. I'm supposed to be a good little girl and stay in my room watching Cbbc.

Pffft, yeah, cause that's gonna happen.

Opening the door, I took a glance around. The coast is clear, good. Abruptly I took off in a run, determined to get away before anyone noticed me sneaking out of my room. After about ten minutes I halted. I was completely and utterly lost. Grinning stupidly at my situation, I began walking in a random direction, intent on exploring.

Approximately twenty minutes later I was stopped by the rough voice of a rather young teen/child.

"Oi scum, what the hell are you doing here?" My eyes widened, I recognised that voice! Whipping round to face him with a bright smile on my face, I replied,

"Uwah, you're Xanxus right? I've heard about you! Apparently you're really strong!"

He growled at me; however his cheeks were slightly pink in embarrassment of my enthusiastic compliment.

"Of course I'm strong! But trash I asked you a question."

"Well I'm here because my Papa Iemitsu brought me to Italy and I snuck outta my room, consequently getting lost!" He raised an eyebrow at me. "Anyway that doesn't matter right now! How about me and you go play for the rest of the day? Ooh or you could train me!"

"Absolutely not scum! Get lost." My eyes began to water at his response. Looking at him in the eye, my lower lip trembled, I began to cry.

"*hic* B-But wh-*hic* y not? I-I just *hic* wanted to be friends!"

Xanxus's Pov

My eyes widened at the tiny girl in front of me. Usually when people cried around me it was because I just scared them that much. But for this child that isn't the case, she's sad because I rejected her offer to play, train and become friends. She wasn't afraid, just upset.

This confused me greatly, why would she want to become my friend so badly? It was a well-known fact that I wasn't a nice person, my temper was famous. Even people who didn't know me at all could take just one glance at my constantly dark expression and promptly conclude that making me angry would probably mean their end.

Taking all of that into consideration, why did some random midget trash want to be my friend?

I looked down towards the still crying girl, unsure in my approach. I placed my hand on her head and spoke

"Tch. Stop crying midget trash. I'll be your damned friend" At my words her tears instantly stopped as she looked up, practically radiating sparkles.

"Really! Yay, now you can train me!"

"Oi! I never said I'd train you." Abruptly, her sparkling stopped and a depressed, blue aura hung around her. Sweatdropping slightly, I sighed. "Fine, I'll help you get stronger little scum." Ah, once again those goddamned sparkles.

Amami's Pov

For the rest of my time in Italy, I spent it all with Xanxus. Oddly enough, I didn't see any other members of the Varia; when I asked Xanxus if he had any friends he simply replied that he'd told them all to fuck off so he could get some peace for a while; I giggled at that.

Over the two weeks me and Xanxus bonded quite a bit. My official nickname is 'Midget trash.' How affectionate right? This resulted in me dubbing him as 'XanXan.' Cue adorable spluttering and embarrassment expressed as anger by Xanxus. He also trained me a lot, and when I say a lot, I mean a LOT. He said (and I quote) 'I refuse to be associated with a weakling.'

Hmph, bastard.

In the end, all the training was extremely beneficial for me, my knowledge of the human anatomy also helped because it meant I knew all the pressure points of the body. At least now I wouldn't be completely defenceless against some douche who wanted to possibly hurt/maim/kill me. You may think I'm paranoid but nobody knows what might happen in the future. Plus, I'm going to be a Mafia boss someday, assassins coming for me while I'm young and weak are always a possibility. Although that makes me wonder how they were dealt with in the original canon. Considering Tsuna was still alive by the time he met Reborn, no assassin ever showed up, however, I'm not Tsuna; the fact that I came to Italy before I was 'supposed' to know about the Mafia and befriended XanXan shows I might've fucked up the plot exponentially… Oh well! I doubt assassins will come anyway. But you never know when some random might try to kidnap me off the street so these fighting skills will be useful; at the very least in the far future when Reborn shows up.

My Italian had also improved dramatically since I came here to Italy, at first I spoke with Xanxus in Japanese but now we always speak Italian.

When Iemitsu finally realised I had ignored his orders to stay in my room everyday and had instead been hanging around Xanxus, he practically threw a fit; crying his eyeballs out about how much of a 'bad influence the mean boy was on his precious little girl.' In all honesty, it was quite amusing, until he latched onto my leg wailing about 'saving me from the meanie.' At that point Xanxus got pissed off and punched the back of his head, yelling at him to shut the hell up. I had snickered at his pain. I know, I'm evil.

Mwahahaha.

Moving on, today is my last day here in Italy. I'm currently standing in front of the training room me and XanXan have been using. Opening the door, I peeked inside.

"XanXan?" I called out. He turned around, with him were two boys, both a young age but the one with short silver hair looked more around XanXan's age whereas the blond with the blinding-bangs looked more my age. With a start I registered that they were Squalo and Belphagor. I pouted when I realised that I didn't have any time to chat with them; I came to say goodbye to my XanXan only.

"What, midget trash?" He walked over to me as the other two just stayed where they were but they did stare at me weirdly. Fully stepping into the room, I responded

"I'm leaving now so give me a hug XanXan." I ordered impatiently. He sighed in fond exasperation. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around me.

"I'm gonna miss you midget trash." His whispered into my ear, a hint of sadness within his voice.

"Aww XanXan don't be sad! We're definitely going to meet again! And when we do I want to see the same old grumpy XanXan with his rage alight in that magnificent way!" He pulled back slightly to look me directly in the eyes.

"You like it when I'm angry?" He sounded surprised, along with another emotion I couldn't quite catch.

"Mmm, pretty much! XanXan looks so cool when he's fired up. I think when you release all your pent-up anger, for a moment, in a dark and haunting way, you look _beautiful._" I smiled at Xanxus's stunned face. I savoured the moment, also peering over to see the shocked looks from Bel and Squalo.

"Goodbye XanXan, can't wait to see you again!"

"B-Bye Amami." With those final words I turned around and sprinted out of the room. It was my time to leave Italy.

* * *

After a little while Xanxus turned away from the door of which Amami had left through and immediately glared at his subordinates. Squalo and Belphagor were gaping at him.

"VOIIII! Who was that little girl! She called you XanXan!" Squalo yelled, his surprise at seeing the kid and her actions finally wearing off.

"Ushishishi. The Prince demands to know who the child was." Bel's creepy laughter kicked in like usual.

"Tch. Nobody you trashes have to worry about." Xanxus's reply only served to make them more curious about the cute little girl who had the balls to call the leader of an infamous assassination group 'XanXan.'

* * *

Yosh! I'm done! First of all let me apologise for taking so damn long to update a second chapter, time just flies by too damn fast! Secondly I ask this because it's a serious dilemma, Should Dino be apart of the harem? I seriously cannot decide.

Reborn: Baka-Author just decide already

Me: I friggin can't okay! It's hard! **T^T**

Reborn: How useless

Me: *sniffs* Screw you! You're just a stupid baby!

Reborn: *Turns Leon into a gun* **Run**

Me: HIIEEEEEEEEEEE *Flees for life*

Reborn: Please comment and review.** Now come back here Author-chan~**

Extra quotes because of my tardiness in updating-

"We don't just embrace Insanity here. We feel it up, French kiss it and then buy it a drink."

"You young Vongola. Just got Muku-rolled" (possessed) Lancia to Tsuna in Khr Abridged


	3. The Trip to Mafia City

InsanityEdge – Hello! How are you this fine evening? On todays specials menu we have the second chapter of The Seducing Sky made by Head Chef InsanityPushedMeOffTheEdge. Quite the mouthful to say hmm? I personally recommend it myself as do all the other voices in my head. Oh don't worry kind reader I'm really rather sane **unless you give me flames.** Now please do enjoy the story. Tally ho!

Favourite Quote of the day:

"Get that bitch a canon. Bitches love canons." – Alucard, Hellsing Ultimate Abridged

Warning: This chappie has a major bout of swearing and there will probably be the odd curse every now and then in future chappies. If you're the type of person who absolutely abhors anything more serious than 'damn' then it probably isn't for you but to those who don't mind, there won't be swearing every other second; I promise.

**Disclaimer: I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn **(╬⓪益⓪)** BUT I DO OWN AMAMI BITCHES!** ┌П┐(►˛◄'!)

Chapter 2: The Trip to Mafia City

The plane ride back to Namimori was uneventful. Iemitsu wasn't even there because of some work that needed attending to. When I arrived back in Namimori however, things began to kick off; I met Kusakabe Tetsuya, Hibari's right-hand man. He at first had been surprised at the casual and friendly relationship between his bloodthirsty boss and a little girl. That surprise quickly ended when I kicked the living crap out of him during a sparring session Kyoya had forced upon us to see if I had grown any while in Italy. After that he treated me with just as much respect as with Hibari. When I asked him why he was so polite to someone younger than him he simply smiled and replied,

"It's only natural for me to treat someone who Kyo-san considers an equal with as much respect as possible."

Another development was that Nana, the saint she is, had bought me a laptop. Now I know that doesn't sound like much but for someone like me whose mind is crammed full of various books revolving around technology, it's like Christmas has come bloody early.

After taking apart, modifying and reconstructing my computer a few times I became interested in the making of weapons and the weaponisation of otherwise harmless technology. You'd be amazed at the amount of books detailing knowledge about how to make various weapons you can find on e-bay and at various libraries. Unfortunately, theoretical knowledge can only get you so far and I quickly hit a wall in my development.

How was I going to pay for the tools and materials needed to make a weaponised computer?

Obviously I couldn't ask Nana, we weren't poor but we weren't rich either and Iemitsu was out of the question. Hence, I learned how to hack. I picked it up rather quickly and after a couple months I was hacking into the accounts of incredibly rich people who wouldn't notice if a few million pounds went missing.

I convinced Nana that Iemitsu –during one of his non-existent phonecalls- had found out about my love for machines and weaponry, as a result deciding to set me up a bank account to pay for the tools I needed. Thus, she didn't question anything when I began to build a little lab in the basement in addition to a blacksmiths in the backyard.

All of these events were over the course of about two years. It had taken extra-long because I also had to train with Kyoya and Kusakabe every other day but they did help me with the building. It was extremely tiring but I was damn well proud when I finished.

* * *

We were at the park, I was typing new ideas for inventions into my recently-modified laptop, Kyoya was finishing off some puny-looking delinquent teens and Kusakabe was watching him with awe and admiration. Over all, a rather normal day.

_Crack!_

Everything went quiet. For a moment, nobody even dared to breath.

"K-Kyo-san" Kusakabe bravely stuttered. My curiosity peaked and I tore my gaze away from my laptop to see what had happened. Abruptly, an overwhelming aura of bloodlust filled the playground; directed straight towards the poor, gangly fool who had accidently broken Hibari's precious tonfa with his face and was now crying silently while holding his bloody, broken nose.

"Herbivore. You broke my tonfa" His voice was as cold as ice. His dark, steel-grey glared at the pitiful, older boy infront of him.

"Herbivore, you _broke_ my _tonfa._"

Silence.

"Pay for it with your life. I'll _bite_ you to _death._"

And so the anguish-filled cries were heard for miles around, striking fear of the cause for the sounds in the hearts of Namimori citizens.

* * *

"Kyo-san what are we going to do?! You can't fight with just one tonfa!" Kusakabe was in hysterics, what were they going to do about Kyoya's precious weapon?!

"Be quiet Tetsuya." Kyoya growled, obviously beating the delinquents senseless hadn't completely relieved his frustration brought by the breaking of his favourite weapon.

"Na guys, I can make Kyo-chan a new tonfa you know? All I need is supplies because while I've completely finished making my lab and my forge, I haven't had the opportunity to get the materials I need." Kyoya turned towards me with a gleam in his eye as Kusakabe practically sparkled.

"What needs to be done Pet?"

* * *

**Welcome to the City of Hermes! The Ultimate City of Trade and Technology**

"Hermes? Isn't that Greek?" Kusakabe inquired as he looked upon the looming, ten meter tall sign.

"Yes it is." Amami replied, "Hermes is a Greek God who represents many things. To normal citizens, the city was named after Hermes because it's a major place of trade, however, to those who partake in shadier dealings, know that it wasn't named after Hermes simply because he represents trading; Hermes is also the God of travellers, thieves and- most importantly, has the job of being a guide to the underworld. In addition, he was often portrayed as a trickster, using skilful, deceptive acts to outwit other Gods for his own amusement."

"…So I other words you brought us to a well-known black market crawling with Yakuza, Mafia and other similar groups?" I looked behind me to beam towards Kusakabe as we got off the bus.

"Yup! Exciting right?"

* * *

"Dear Lord, I humbly ask f'r thou hast mercy upon mine pitiful soul and betoken me of wheter i hast di'd on the way through the do'r; f'r these walls enwheel a heaven of mine most consistant dreams. If ye say nay I shalt rejoice f'r today be a wonderful day" Kusakabe sweatdropped as he listened to my heartfelt monologue.

"Is it really that amazing? It doesn't seem like much to me. At least, not enough to break out into Shakespeare." He commented as he looked around the shop; we were currently in a blacksmiths called Stabbin'Knives with the trendy catchphrase of: We make 'em, u stab 'em. I gasped in pure horror as I turned to gape at Kusakabe, how dare he insult this holy place!

"Bakaa Kusakabe, if I need material to make weapons, wouldn't it be best to go to a place where they're made? Do you not see the high-quality of the metal that the knives littering the floor are made of? Evidently this man has a good supplier of metal. I'm disappointed in your lack of observational skills Tet-Chan" I tutted as he flushed slightly and glanced towards the floor in an attempt to avoid my penetrating gaze.

I heard a loud, booming laugh come from the back of the dimly lit shop. Stepping into the light was a very tall and wide man with a good amount of stubble on his chin. He had short, dark brown hair and eyes the same colour but they held a glint of an emotion, of which I couldn't tell.

"Well Lassie, you must be quite knowledgeable ta be able ta notice tha'. My name is Vincent. What can I be doin' fer ya?" His voice was a rugged, deep baritone that echoed around the small building. I gave him a sheepish grin.

"Well I was sorta, maybe hoping that you could inform me of your metals supplier? Also, if you'd be so kind, give me a few tip on making knives and other assorted weaponry?" A curious edge appeared in his dark chocolate eyes; he looked over me, judging me intensely. What exactly he was looking for/at I have no idea. Apparently he found something he liked because he cracked an appraising grin at me.

"Bwahaha! I like you girlie! So brazenly asking fer me ta teach you! What makes you think I should tell you what I know?" I smirked at him, inwardly rejoicing at the fact I seemed to have passed some sort of test.

"Because I'm an innocent, pure young child and if you reject me then I'll be forced to go somewhere else and what if the next guy I go to isn't a nice man? Uwah! Something bad might happen! You wouldn't let that happen would you mister?" I tilted my head and puffed out my cheeks to become the symbol of innocence; complete with a sparkling pink background and rainbow coloured unicorns merrily playing around.

Vincent froze, momentarily overwhelmed while the sheer _cuteness_ of the child. Snapping out of it quickly, he laughed - if slightly subdued, once more.

"Bwahahaha! You got me there girl! I'll tutor you. Come further into the shop; introduce yourself and the young lad with you!" I beamed at the man as I walked towards him, putting out my hand for him to shake.

"Sawada Amami and this boy is my friend, Kusakabe Tetsuya. I'm looking forward to working with you Vinnie!"

As they shook hands, Kusakabe stood a little ways behind them, completely forgotten and wondering to himself how easily Amami could make friends with pretty much anyone.

* * *

After setting up arrangements with Vinnie for me to come back once a week on a Sunday for me to learn from him; Kusakabe and I left the shop, intent to explore for the rest of the day. I left Kusakabe at a little knitting shop; it was a little pastime of his that supposedly released his stress. He was incredibly bashful when I called him out on the fact he'd been staring and the shop for the past five minutes but eventually admitted that he loved to knit and wanted to go in but was anxious in case I found his hobby lame. His worry was quite cute, after teasing him slightly I assured him that his hobby was completely okay was me, plus I actually found it rather endearing. He blushed furiously and scurried away.

What the hell a knitting shop was doing in a black market I've no idea.

Anyhow, after buying a whole backpacks worth of mint chocolate along with strawberry flavoured pocky as well as buying a new red backpack to put the pocky in, I came across a literal goldmine. The robot fighting contests! I inwardly jumped around like a kangaroo that had eaten multiple crack bunnies when I sat down in the arena. The arena's seats were pretty much full and I'd been lucky to find one.

I looked around, the people around me weren't particularly noteworthy and the announcer's box was opposite to me. My eyes refocused on the stage when I saw a couple people and robots make their way towards it.

"**Konnichiwa Minna-San! I'm your announcer Koe ****Ōkina and this is my partner Kikoeru Kiyoshi-San!"**

"**Ossu."**

"**Without further ado! The first two competitors for today, weighing in at twenty pound of pure metal… Spanner-san and his robot- Lolly!" **

Spanner! Well, actually I probably shouldn't be all that surprised; Spanner is obsessed with robots. A robot in one corner of the ring spun in a circle… I'm guessing that's Lolly.

"**Aaaaaaand in the other corner, the undefeated Champion! The ruler of Robofighting! The Immortal King of the metal-boxing Kingdom. The indomitable Messiah of Battlemania! The-"**

"**Eiji and robot Cyb"**

"**Aah! Kikoeru-San! Why did you cut me off?!" **There was a somewhat annoyed grunt through the speakers.

"**Took too long."**

"**Aha so mean! Now let the battle BEGINNNN!"**

* * *

"GO ON LOLLY! KIIL THAT STUPID BITCHASS FUCKNUTS! CMON MAUL THE SCROTUM BLENDING FUCKER!BEAT THE METAL WANK EXTRACTOR INTO THE MUTHAFUCKIN GROUND! RIP THE FLIMSY TINCAN CROSS-EYED NIPPLE SOD INTO LITTLE FUCKING PIECES! DIE CYB DIE!" People in their seats edged away at the frankly terrifying little girl who had a penchant for rather innovative curses.

* * *

After hearing such foul language, Spanner was curious to find who was supporting his robot so avidly. When he glanced towards the crowd he was surprised to find a young girl –no older than eight- was the source of admittedly, the most creative cussing he'd ever heard. The girl was obviously un-supervised by any parents. She peaked his interest when she began detailing various ways for his robot to torture the other. Deciding to enquire about the mysterious child later, he turned his eyes back to the stage. He had a fight to win.

* * *

"**And the winner is… LOLLY!"**

"YES YOU FUCKING BITCH! WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO"

* * *

The fights ended a couple hours later with Lolly coming out on top of the proverbial dogpile.I walked out the door, intent on continuing my earlier exploration.

"Oi! The little girl over there." I paused, waiting to see if it was me the person had been calling to. I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned around to be met with the monotonous face of young Spanner sucking on his signature oddly-shaped lollipop. I tilted my head in an inquisitive manner, silently asking why he had approached me.

"I wanted to know your name. In some of the harder matches, when you were cheering on Lolly you yelled out various vulnerable points of the other robots that you wouldn't have been able to notice if you didn't have an intricate knowledge of mechanics. I found you interesting." He looked directly into my eyes…

Huh, I'd never realised how green Spanners eyes were until now. They were a rich moss colour, full to the brim with intellect and curiosity.

"I'll give you my name if you give me one of those lollipops, hold out your arm and tell me about yourself." He raised a blond eyebrow. Stretching his arm out after pulling a lolly out of his pocket he replied,

"I am Spanner. I'm Italian, have a strong love for robots and I make these lollys myself." After taking the sweet treat, I produced a pen out of nowhere and began writing on Spanner's arm.

"My name is Sawada Amami, I'm Japanese, have a minor obsession with weaponry as well as technology. I love pocky and here is my Skype username, call me. Ja ne new friend!" Without looking at Spanner's face, I turned around and walked off, raising my hand to wave behind me.

* * *

"Pet. You are late." Kyoya glared at me. I was thirty minutes late getting back to the meet-up point close to the entrance of the gigantic city by the cause of the food stands that had distracted me on my way back.

"Ahh, gomenasai Kyoya-sama~ I didn't mean too." I pouted, pretending to be upset with myself… Kyoya saw through me immediately.

"Fine Pet. Just don't do it again." Just because he knew my pout was fake, didn't mean he could resist it. I grinned like a fox as I started to trot towards the city's entrance.

Kusakabe sighed as Kyoya and Amami began to walk away from him, it seemed as if he'd been forgotten by the both of them. It was really rather depressing not to even be acknowledged by either of them. Just before Tetsuya took his first step, Amami looked over her shoulder and shot him a mischievous smile.

"Hurry up Tet-chan! If you don't I'm going to leave you behind and take your place as Kyo-chan's right-hand man!" Kusakabe grinned as he ran to catch up with them, trust Amami to sense his loneliness. It was nice to know they cared.

And done! I thank all who've read this chapter, who have reviewed and followed/favourited my story! I love you all! Especially reviewers, ya'll make me feel special ;) To any who were interested Koe Ōkina translates to Loud Voice and Kikoeru Kiyoshi means quiet sound. Originally Vinnie was supposed to be an all-out, guns-blazing, heavily accented scot who was only gonna be a random oc who never appears again but because I'm crap at writing accents. I looked up various ways of writing Scottish accents. The result was extremely Scottish but I decided that I liked my lightly accented version better. Then I kinda ran away with his character and Amami is his apprentice as a result! Ushishishishishi oops!

Funny quote of the day!:

"Never lock your doors at night, people will come through the ceiling."

"As long as I'm here I might as well stare at you threatingly." - Hibari, KHR abridged


	4. Cherished Warmth

"Okaerinasai Goshujin-sama! Mistress InsanityEdge has dropped off the next chapter of her fanfiction, 'The Seducing Sky.' She wishes for you to read it and tell her of your thoughts upon it. If I may be so bold Master; I took a quick peek into what she wrote and must warn you of the-!... Never mind happy reading!"

**Disclaimer: The day I own KHR is the day Hibari decides to become a Nun and travel to the end of the rainbow in search of a handsome leprechaun to fall in love with. Then have a scandalous affair in which he wishes to keep his vow of abstinence but the lil' Leprechaun's ginger beard calls to him so seductive-like…..So yeah, I don't fricken own it. **

_**Warning**__: It won't happen for quite some time but I just realised that I don't think I'd ever actually said that this story will eventually contain lemons. Though most of you probably guessed that by the fact it's rated M, others mightn't. This chapter also contains graphic violence so don't say I didn't warn ya!_

* * *

Chapter 3: Cherished Warmth

So…

I finally met an Arcobaleno.

In all honesty, I totally hadn't been expecting it; I mean sure, I'd completely deviated from the original storyline, but weren't the arcobaleno a busy group of peopl-er toddlers, scattered around various places in the world, far too engrossed in their various illegal activities to have the time to take a break and chat to a random stranger?...

Apparently not.

* * *

_Dudoodideding!_

The doorbell chimed as I walked into the large store. It was one weirdass store.

The walls were a clinical white, as was the floor. There were rows of random objects in glass display cases lined a lime green colour. The items inside ranged from a small, purple-spotted plant munching on a few grapes- doesn't that count as cannibalism?- To a small robot smoking a cigar.

And that isn't even what made the store so odd; the weirdest thing in the place was a green-haired baby typing away at a laptop, while sitting upon a large crocodile (or was it alligator?) that was currently lounging in a random pool which just so happened to be in the middle of the store.

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Back the fuck up.

Green-haired?

Baby?

Crocodile?

I think we all know who this is.

Verde guys, Verde! That crazyass In-The-Name-Of-Science lightning Arcobaleno! The dude was a verifiable genius, he-

"Excuse me." He cut me off from my mental rant. His voice was a flat monotone; his face betraying no emotions as light reflected of his glasses and suddenly made his tiny form much more intimidating. "Who are you?" This time there was a hint of a threat within his words.

I smiled broadly at the chibi, completely unaffected by his slight warning tone.

"Sawada Amami, Yorishiku!" He blinked at me, likely taken aback by my enthusiasm.

"I am Verde. What is a little girl like you doing in my store? And for that matter, Hermes?

I grinned deviously,

"What am I doing at the store of what's probably the world's greatest scientist Verde? Pssst, nothing at all my good sir. I definitely wasn't looking at all the various dangerous items while mentally concocting a few hazardous things of my own. I'm far too young to think such things."

* * *

We hit it off instantly. He told me he was intrigued by my possibly insane, but intelligent mind. I protested at the insane part, but then he pointed out what normal eight year-old girl would be interested in the process of making a nuke? Needless to say he won that particular argument. We shared various ideas about many different types of technology, discussed numerous topics upon assorted developments in the scientific world and went about designing several theories concerning the inner workings of the Vongola dying will bullet.

Eventually the conversation shifted to more menial subjects, for instance, did you know Verde absolutely loathes the smell of almonds? His favourite food is strawberries and his first ever invention was a door that slammed itself into the faces of people who hadn't been invited into the house.

This went on for hours, the both of us just enjoying one another's company. When we finally realised how long we'd been talking for, it had already become pitch black outside.

"It's too dark outside for you to reach your home safely. You will be spending the night here instead. I have an apartment upstairs." He ashy grey orbs bore into mine with a mostly blank expression plus a hint of concern; I was surprised at the colour because I'd always thought they'd be green like his hair. I gave him a lopsided grin.

"Awww is Verde-chan worried about me? I'll be fine, I can kick ass when the need arises." His gaze intensified.

"Hermes is not the type of city for any child to walk around in during the night. It is improbable that a young girl like you would be able to traverse the city safely during the dark." The finality in his tone signalled the end of the discussion, I playfully rolled my eyes in defeat.

"Hai Hai."

* * *

It was now very late. I'd climbed into Verde's bed after finishing up my phone-call with Nana to inform her of my whereabouts. (Well I told her I was at a Kyoya's house, no need to tell her that I was in another city.) Then texted Kyo-chan to notify him of the situation.

Verde's room was very plain, a few bits and pieces scattered around the floor. There was a small, dusty desk to the far corner with nothing on it. Overall the room didn't look very well lived in; the small bed was the only object that looked like it had been touched in the last few years.

Verde walked in the room dragging a futon behind him. He glanced towards my horizontal form then went back to his original task.

"Are you planning to sleep on that?" I yawned as I spoke, drowsiness seeping in.

"Yes." I blinked at him. Dragging myself out of his bed, I walked towards his small body. I plucked the futon out of his hand, picked him up and jumped back onto the bed. He didn't struggle as I moved us under the covers and snuggled him close to my chest. "Amami, what are you doing?" My eyelids began to droop and my voice became lethargic as I replied,

"Mmm… warm."

* * *

Tensely, Verde shifted a little bit as he lay in Amami's arms. It wasn't because he was physically uncomfortable -her arms actually made a quite a cosy resting place- It was because that only ever so rarely the cursed baby was touched by another human being, even that was usually someone trying to cause pain. It had been so long since Verde had felt the comfort of a hug; Luce had been the only person to ever show such affection towards him, and she had died many years ago.

So it wasn't physical uncomfortability keeping Verde awake long after Amami had fallen asleep. It was the mental awkwardness that came with the knowledge that for Verde, skin-to-skin contact had happened so few and far inbetween he had forgotten the feeling. His mind was unused to the closeness of another body; hence, it had forced itself into a high state of awareness, refusing to allow any rest.

He sighed as he looked at the face of the peacefully sleeping girl. He wondered about the words she had spoken before leaving him to his mental turmoil. Warm? He was warm? In all his life, no one had ever said something like that to him. Cold was a word he'd been called regularly; mostly concerning his heart but sometimes his eyes or personality. Blank was another word he was familiar with, but warm? Never.

Well, he supposed, warmth radiated of all human beings so it's not like Verde would be different. However, the bed would've been warm enough without Verde's presence; Amami probably wasn't talking about a corporeal type of warm. The idea that Amami called him warm not because of his natural body heat but because that she thought him to be warm in heart and soul brought a smile to his lips.

Of course there was no real way of knowing if that is the type of warm Amami was talking about. But, Verde had a feeling, just an inkling, that Amami was talking about the type of warmth he had concluded.

_'Amami.'_ He thought to himself as he snuggled further into her embrace.

_'You're warm too.'_

* * *

"That doesn't answer my question." I blinked at Spanner's image on the computer screen. We were currently Skyping one another, both of us in the comfort of our own bedrooms, it had become normal routine to do so; Spanner had contacted me only a couple days after our first meeting and we've been talking to eachother daily ever since. Except of course, yesterday when I went to Hermes.

"How so?" I questioned him.

"I asked why you were so bruised. What I got was a story about how you spent the night at the home of the famous Lightning Arcobaleno, otherwise known as the reincarnation of Da Vinci. And as interesting as that is, it wasn't what I'd originally asked you about." I rolled my eyes at him.

"I've told you about bloodthirsty Skylark-kun right?"

"Yeah. The crazy kid that one day out of the blue demanded you be his pet?"

"Yup that's him. Well he was super angry at me for leaving it so late before telling him where I was, as a result, when I got home we had a little…Sparring match" Spanner's eyebrows rose slightly, making him lose his original stoic expression.

"He didn't hurt you too bad did he?" I smiled at his concern.

"Nah, he'd never hit me too hard; he likes me too much. I just got whacked atop the head a couple times is all. Don't tell him I said that though." Grinning, I winked at him cheekily. "Anyways, have you finished your robot yet? I wanna see him!" I pouted childishly as he sighed. He walked out of the camera's view for a couple moments, when he came back he had the cutest Mosca baby in the world. My eyes sparkled as I struggled to keep in a squeal at the sight.

"I was thinking about naming him Pop. It matches with Lolly's name." My eyes snapped towards Spanner. The pure fury in my eyes made him shiver with fear. The blood quickly left his face as I snapped at him.

"No! You're naming it Akambo Mosca, Akamo for short or so help me God I will travel to Italy myself and mutilate you beyond recognition." Spanner nodded his head frantically, fear present in his eyes. I slowly calmed down again. Raising my hands in the air I cheered.

"Yay! Akamo is so cute!" Spanner watched me like I was mentally ill or something equally ludicrous. He relaxed as he listened to me babble about how cute the new robot is.

"Definitely bipolar." He mumbled to himself, sure that Amami wouldn't catch what he said. He was surprised he'd managed to get the redhead angry because usually _nothing_ would make her genuinely mad. Spanner hadn't known her for long but he already knew she wasn't the type to get angry at all.

"Spanner I can hear you." He froze as his eyes locked with hers over the computer screen. He sweated profusely until he noticed the amused glint in her ocean-blue orbs. He sagged with relief when he realised she wasn't angered by his remark. Although it only served to confuse him further as it proved his theory of her being the generally calm type. For a split second he wondered why the name of the robot bothered her so much and how she'd managed to choose the other name he had been thinking of; Mosca. He quickly shook all the thoughts out of his head because he knew he wouldn't ever get an answer. Amami was nothing if not sly and she could change the whole conversation around before he even noticed.

* * *

I coughed as I struggled to sit up.

'_Oh shit.'_ I thought to myself. Attempting to peer into the darkness that surrounded me, I slipped a knife out of my sleeve to slice the ropes that were currently digging painfully into my wrists and ankles. It was so dark I couldn't see more than a couple feet in front of my face. Taking a deep breath, I calmly assessed the situation. This wasn't the first time I'd been kidnapped. Well, the old me had been abducted many times, the KHR me hadn't at all. Either way I was mentally experienced in this sort of thing.

I thought back to what caused me to get into this situation.

_It was on the way home from a tutoring session by Vinnie in Hermes. I was literally just at the edge of Namimori. I had been walking down a empty street, minding my own damn business when a creepy dude in a flaky-looking suit appeared with a whole bunch of other poor excuses of Mafiosos. I had sighed drearily as I took in the amount of men that were there. I may be a kickass fighter but I was still only nine, I couldn't take on the ridiculous horde of men no matter how shitty they were. Deciding I wasn't going to go down without a fight, I grinned a sharp, foxy grin at the slimeball in the front. He flinched as he caught the bloodthirsty look in my eye. Letting loose an animalistic growl I charged towards the man in the front, determined to take down as many of the bastards as I could._

I grinned a similar grin to the one before as I recalled the memories of me beating several men to a pulp. I had taken out at least half, possibly two thirds; Kyoya would be proud.

My ears twitched as I sensed someone coming closer. Their heavy footfalls were painfully loud compared to the quietness of the dark room I currently resided in. I laid back down and pretended to be asleep. The door squeaked and suddenly there was brightness behind my eyes. I forced myself to stay still as I heard the man walk closer.

'_Just a little more.'_

"I'm telling you, the little bitch is a monster. She crushed the skulls of about six of our men. And they're not the only ones who're now ten feet under. The shitty little demon got fucking creative." His gruff voiced was laced with anger.

I froze. I had killed them? I mean yeah I went all out but… I didn't think I had killed them. For a second I stopped breathing at this new revelation. Fortunately, I had already killed plenty of times in my past life to be completely okay with the subject. And even if I wasn't, I would have to get used it because the Mafia is a dangerous world to live in. It was a dog eat dog world, as such, I would definitely be killing again in the future.

I heard the rustling of clothes and the clink of his belt as it fell to the floor. The man leaned closer, his breath fanning my neck.

"Tell you what though, the little bitch would actually be worth quite a lot on the slave market. But you'll have to wait until I'm finished with her." I could hear the leering smile in his disgusting voice. Snapping my eyes open, I quickly headbutted the nasty toad. I smiled satisfyingly when I heard a distinct crunch. Drawing my knife from behind my back before he had time to recover, I stabbed him in the worst place I could think of… The groin.

Yes.

I did just stab a man's dick.

He screamed in pain. He dropped the phone but before he could bend over I took the knife out, and restabbed his groin but this time I made sure to get his testicles.

Yes.

I did just stab a man's balls.

He fell to the floor, crying and screaming out in excruciating agony. I grinned cruelly at him.

"Who's the bitch now huh?" I contemplated finishing him off but decided that living with the kind of injury I gave him would be punishment enough. I quickly left the room.; knowing that the man on the phone was either going to arrive soon himself or someone else would be on the way.

In my hurry I accidentally knocked into someone. Before I could react I felt something prick my arm. Suddenly, I felt extremely tired and sluggish. It took all of my willpower to just remain awake.

I was lifted up to meet the face of a rather pretty female. I could tell she had short pink hair and magenta coloured eyes but that was all I could determine because my head was starting to spin and my eyesight was becoming blurry.

"Oho? You're still awake? I put enough in that to knock out any ordinary man." She whistled in what was probably supposed to be a complimenting way. I tried glaring at her but failed miserably. She hoisted me onto her shoulder and began to walk away from the room I'd come from.

After some time we came another room. I was placed on a hard stone chair and straps were placed on my arms and legs, ensuring I was completely stuck to the chair and unable to move an inch.

The coldness of the chair seeped into my skin; it was an almost burning sensation. Drowsily, I inspected my surroundings. The walls were a sickly white colour. Weapons and torture instruments were hung on the wall; I was not impressed by their variety. The floor was made from the same dark stone material as the chair. I was sure that if I could see more clearly then I would be able to find blood stains littering the room.

For some reason, we waited. The woman didn't say anything or do anything; hence I figured we were waiting for someone else to arrive. My instincts quietly whispered that when they did it would not bode well for me.

* * *

The door jolted open with a loud thud. Three more figures entered the room. My eyesight had begun to restore itself by now. It was two men and one woman. The men were both quite good-looking; one was blonde with brown eyes and the other a brunette with a darker shade of brown for his own orbs. The last was a woman, she had the magenta-coloured eyes of her female companion and the same pink hair, yet she lacked any type of beauty. She was as ugly as a troll. Her face was red and blotchy with acne; her body was unappealing and was without a single attractive curve.

"So this is the lil' bitch eh?" The brunette looked towards me, smiling oddly as he did so. The blond looked towards him, the corners of his mouth turned up into a vile grin.

"I can't wait to play with her." The brunette smirked in response to the blonde's words. Pretty Pinky rolled her eyes and they both flashed a small grin at her. Pugly Pinky went a little bit red when they didn't even glance her way. Huffing slightly she glared at me.

"You two don't get all the fun! Me and sis are gonna take a couple rounds at it too!" Her voice just screamed attention-seeker. She sauntered up to me, swaying her hips in a disgusting manner. The men behind her made didn't bother to look, the revulsion in their eyes made it abundantly clear they didn't like the ugly sister.

Pugly Pinky sneered at me in a way she probably thought to be intimidating.

"Now then you little shit. Do you have any wishes on which way to be tortured? Or you could just tell us what we want to know." Boredly, I looked directly into her eyes. With a completely straight face I asked,

"How am I supposed to tell you what you want to know if you haven't told me what you want? For all I know you could be asking what day it is, stupid shit." She went a shiny red colour and the three others began laughing. Especially the blonde guy, his laughter boomed throughout the room. She pulled back from me somewhat, her eyes furious. She raised her heavy hand and laid it's back across my cheek. A thin cut on the right side of my face, from my ear to my lip appeared and started to dribble blood. I looked at the hand she'd slapped me with to find the pointy ring on her finger that had cut me.

"You fucking bitch! Don't try to get fucking smart with me! Don't worry, in a moment you'll be fucking bawling!" Pretty Pinky rolled her eyes once more. Stepping up, she put a hand on her sister's shoulder to calm her. Turning to me, she spoke,

"We have information that around three years ago you were seen entering the Vongola mansion and even the room of the Head of the CEDEF. You're the same age as the Head's son. It's most likely that you're a playmate of his. Tell us who he is and where we can find him." I stared at her for a long moment. Then I slid my eyes over to the Pugly Pinky, blondie and the brunette. They were all deadly serious and waiting for my answer. I couldn't help it, these people were so stupid it made me burst out into laughter.

They recoiled at the sound of my maniacal laughter. The brunette's eyes narrowed. The blonde screamed.

"What's so fucking funny you little bitch?!" Finally, my laughter stopped. I shot him an amused look.

"You are. You're all fucking hilarious." He let out a scream of frustration. The Pugly Pinky grabbed a hammer off the wall and turned towards me.

"You're gonna get it now bitch!" I smirked cruelly at her.

"Wait! You said I get to say how I want to be tortured!" She paused, as did the others.

"I want to be tortured by Pretty Pinky over there instead of Pugly Pinky over here. If I'm going to be tortured to death, I at least want it to be by someone who doesn't look like they weren't just hit by the ugly stick, but the whole damn tree." She shrieked in rage, embarrassment flooding out of her. She slammed the hammer down on my hands, smashing the bones within them. I didn't let out a scream or cry. I refused to cry in front of the enemy.

The brunette pushed her out of the way; she landed with a solid thump on the ground. His eyes roamed my body, he licked his lips, not in a perverted way, but sinisterly, he was going to enjoy my pain.

I felt the blond shift behind me, he handed the brunette a small but sharp knife. I closed my eyes in preparation, quietly hoping this wasn't going to be the end.

* * *

It felt like it had been going on for hours, but in all likelihood it had only been about one, possibly two. My fingernails had all been ripped out. My toes were bent and crooked at odd angles. There were bits of fragmented bone jutting out my skin. My left shoulder had been dislocated and cuts from the brunette's knife littered my body. Yet still, I refused to scream or cry. The brunette was irritated by my silence and he knew I knew it which just pissed him off more.

He leaned in close to my face, curling his lip at me.

"This is your last chance. Tell me who the Vongola heir is." I smiled mirthlessly at him, swiftly spitting a glob of saliva mixed with blood right into his eyeball. It rolled down his face and in his shock and disgust, it took him a couple moments before he actually removed it.

"You'll fucking pay for that." He turned around and walked off into the far corner of the room. When he came back he was holding a small torture device. "You see this?" He waved it about in front of my face. "I'm going to use this to rip your eyes out of their sockets. After you're blind we'll see if you want to start talking." My eyes widened in fear, I hastily narrowed them again. I breathed deeply to remain calm, and then I prayed; not to God, but to my friends, family, hoping that someone would pull through and make it in time.

He brought the device to my face with an agonizing slowness. My breath quickened when it was only an inch away from my right eye.

All of a sudden there was a thunderous explosion. I guessed it occurred at the other side of the building I was in because an explosion that loud would've been huge. For it not to hit us we must've been quite far away from the cause of it.

The brunette cursed and threw the device to the side. I let out a silent breath of relief.

"Dammit, what the fuck was that!" The blonde cursed. He reached for the door but it flew open with a resounding bang before he managed to touch it. Silence engulfed the room. My torturers stared down at the baby standing in the doorway.

Abruptly, I realised that they must be one of the Arcobaleno. Looking a little harder I recognised the helmet they were wearing; Skull's helmet.

Anger began rolling off Skull's body in waves. My torturers quivered in fear. Even though Skull was the weakest Arcobaleno, that didn't actually mean he was weak. Evidenced by the sheer amount of killing intent he was releasing.

"I'm going to kill you." He spoke bluntly, his voice as cold as steel.

I watched in amazement as Skull murdered the four without any aid from his pet or other Carcassa Famiglia members. When he was finished he turned towards me, taking of his helmet as he did so. Skull smiled gently at my broken form.

"You're safe now." I gave him a heartfelt smile as I passed out.

* * *

Skull sucked in a breath as the beaten young girl before him smiled what was perhaps the most beautiful smile he'd ever seen. Even though she was bloody and hurt, she had managed to smile so gratefully at him, like he was some type of hero. Her smile radiated with unspoken gratitude, kindness and appreciation. It was as if the fact she had been tortured no longer mattered because Skull was here, he had saved her and that was all that was important.

'_When was the last time' _Skull thought bitterly. _'That someone had smiled at me like that?'_ Thinking as far back as he could, Skull realised nobody had ever smiled at him like that. Yes, Luce had smiled at him with care, but _never_ had she smiled at him like the little girl had. _Not once_ had Luce given him a smile that told him she thought everything was going to be okay, simply because Skull was there. With sour realism the Cloud Arcobaleno consciously acknowledged the fact that those special smiles had always been given to the other Arcobaleno; namely Reborn, Colonello and Fon, but sometimes Viper and Verde.

Skull knew that Luce had loved him just as much as the other arcobaleno, it was the reason he never really fought back against the others when they forced him to be their lackey; Luce would hate them fighting eachother. Even so, that didn't stop the bubble of jealousy rise from his chest when he thought about how he was the only one who hadn't been relied upon.

Focusing his gaze back on the unconscious girl, his jealously completely vanished. He decided it didn't matter that Luce had never given him the special smile, because the girl had. He no longer cared about such meaningless things like being considered unreliable. All Skull wanted to do was to see that breath-taking smile again and again, as many times as he could. He wanted to protect and befriend the young girl that had shifted his lonely world on its axis with one, beautiful smile. It didn't matter if he was weak, because he could train to become strong.

Skull didn't have loved ones or family, but he knew, he could change that, _would_ change that. In that moment, Skull resolved to become apart of the little girl's life and cherish her as much as he could, she would be his only precious person, and that was all Skull would need, because it would be _her_.

* * *

For those who don't know, akambo means baby. This is most definitely my longest chappie and I am crazy proud of it. I hope everyone enjoyed it, I know it might be quite a dark turn from the light chappies we've had so far. Either way, if you feel like it review ;) I thank all who followed and favourited. Peace out! ;3 Kufufufufufu!


	5. Worry Not

Hoi Hoi! InsanityEdge here! I give my thanks to all who reviewed, followed favourite and took the time out of their day to read my story. Domo arigatou!

**Disclaimer: If I owned KHR I wouldn't have ended the anime without showing 10-yr later Tsuna's face! That really annoyed me you know!**

Chapter 4- Worry Not

Skull was worried, unbearably so. A week had already passed since he had saved the little girl from the Wüste Famiglia. -He'd already sworn to destroy that particular Famiglia when he had the time.- She hadn't woken up yet, despite being treated by what was probably the best doctor the underworld could offer.

Shamal had predicted the girl was going to wake up about three days ago. When Skull interrogated him as to why the girl hadn't woken up, Shamal had informed him that the girl had been drugged and her body was trying to flush out the toxins and repair the damage left behind. Unfortunately, this hadn't reassured Skull at all, in the end he'd snapped at the doctor to make the girl better or Skull would hunt him down and make his life _hell._

Needless to say that Shamal had been surprised at the intimidating side of the usually wimpy Arcobaleno.

.

Skull stared the comatose form of the girl he had sworn to protect. Currently, they were in Skull's bedroom, the walls were a shade of dark purple and matched the marginally lighter carpeted floor. There were posters on the walls about stunt-biking – though none of them had his adult face on them. His bed had a black canopy with dark grey satin curtains pulled to the side.

Skull himself sat on a pillow beside the girl's head. He watched her chest rise and fall, simply to reaffirm the fact she was alive.

Shamal strode into the room. His eyes landed on the uncovered face of the Cloud Arcobaleno before settling on the still body of the girl. It was unnerving to see an Arcobaleno care for another so openly. Speaking of which, Shamal frowned as he thought upon the condition of the little girl. Her body was well on its way to healing but her mind…

Regardless of that, her mental state would be a problem they would have to solve later, for the first hurdle needing to be conquered is for the girl to wake up.

* * *

_And though,_

* * *

Five agonisingly long days passed until it happened.

I twitched as my eyes flickered open. For a couple minutes, I couldn't focus on my current situation, but then realisation hit me like a ton of bricks; I had been saved by Skull, the Cloud Arcobaleno.

I heard a rustling sound beside me, turning to look I came face-to-face with said Cloud Arcobaleno. His eyes were wide with shock and relief. I smiled at my saviour, pouring the words I couldn't currently say into it; my eyes closing with the sheer joy I felt. Finally the torture was over and I'm _safe, _I'm _alive. _No amount of words could describe how _grateful_ I was to Skull for saving me.

From this moment on, I know that Skull is going to be someone who I'll treasure having in my life.

* * *

Skull was stunned. The brilliancy of her smile left him speechless. Absentmindedly, he wondered if he would ever get used to the pure amount of love in her smile, he wouldn't mind if he didn't though.

With a start, he realised he should probably call for Shamal. As he took one more look at the small girl, he noted that she seemed content to lay there and watch him without saying anything.

"I'm going to call for a Doctor. Stay still until I come back okay?" She blinked slowly.

Jumping off the bed, Skull hurried to where Shamal should be; he didn't want to leave the precious little girl alone for long.

* * *

_she be but little,_

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, Shamal had been dragged to the girl's room sporting a large bruise on his side for flirting with one of the mansion's maids during such a critical time.

He eyed the small girl, she looked so fragile that Shamal was surprised she had survived at all. He approached her slowly as to not startle her. Skull had already climbed onto the bed and sat next to her quilt-covered legs.

In response to their movement, she unhurriedly attempted to sit up. Quickly, Skull and Shamal assisted her and pushed her to rest on the headboard. She flashed them both a small smile of thanks.

"Be careful. Your body still hasn't fully healed yet and won't for quite some time." She sent a minuscule nod in Shamal's direction. Whipping out his clipboard, he cleared his throat and began the process of explaining to her exactly what was going on.

"Okay then, I am Doctor Shamal and this is Skull; he's the one who saved you from the Wüste Famaglia members. You've been comatose for a week and five days. The wounds inflicted won't leave any lasting damage except a few scars. Any questions?" She shook her head at him and glanced over to Skull.

Skull caught her look. He frowned slightly at the distress in it. Turning around, he asked the doctor to leave; Shamal complied without complaint.

Turning back, he was engulfed in a pair of small arms that shook almost unnoticeably. Before he could question her, she spoke,

"The whole time I was being tortured… Not once did I cry, scream or show fear… I refused to give them the satisfaction… but now because I feel safe with you Skull I can say this…I was so_ scared!_ And I was in so much _pain_, it _hurt _so _bad_." She broke off into a loud sob; her tears preventing her from saying any more. She gripped Skull like a lifeline, pushing her face into his mop of purple hair.

Skull hugged her back tightly. Quietly, he swore to remove the Wüste Famaglia from existence in the most painful way possible.

* * *

For how long they sat there and the girl cried, neither knew. But, they both knew that through the experience they had become extremely close. To Skull, it was because in the Mafia emotions were a rare thing to be seen and shared, to have let herself show him her true feelings, was literally a declaration of intimacy.

The girl sniffled as she raised her head; Skull smoothly wiped away any lingering tears on her cheeks. Her eyes softened at the affectionate action. Suddenly she paused, causing Skull to tilt his head in a questioning way. She smiled gently towards him.

"I just realised I haven't actually told you my name. I am Sawada Amami; it's an honour to meet you, my saviour." Skull blushed lightly at the term 'saviour', but quickly got over it to grin humorously at her, amused at how befitting her name was.

"Nice to meet you Amami-chan! I am the great Skull-sama! From now on, I'll protect you no matter what! I promise it on my name as the Immortal Skull!"

The brightness of her grin overwhelmed him.

* * *

_she is fierce._

* * *

Shamal frowned as he walked along the long corridor. His destination was the room of his latest patient, Amami. The (extremely cute, but despite being a lover of all women, Shamal was no paedophile,) little girl was intriguing to say the least, and Shamal didn't know whether or not to be concerned over her mental health; the fact she was tortured didn't seem to bother her in the slightest, the only thing that did bother her about the whole situation was that she wouldn't be able to get payback on her torturers personally, though that didn't mean she wasn't exceptionally happy when Skull had told her that he planned on destroying the Famaglia they had belonged to. Shamal himself had also been pleased at the declaration. To him, a Famaglia that would harm such a cute, innocent girl was absolute scum.

Shamal knocked softly on the large, oak door. A soft voice, like tinkling bells granted him entrance. Walking inside, he swiftly glanced around, surprised by the by Skull's absence. He hardly ever left her bedside, especially when Shamal was near; it seems he doesn't trust Shamal to be alone with the girl; the good Doctor pouted a little at that, he wasn't a pervert! He swears!

The girl giggled as if she knew his current train of thoughts, effectively bringing his attention back to what he had originally come for. She spoke,

"Skull has gone to bring me some food. And yes, he does think you're a pervert." Was he really so readable a mere civilian child could accurately guess his thoughts? But, as he saw the knowing glint in Amami's eye he couldn't help but fell she was no ordinary civilian, maybe she had been before she was kidnapped but at least not now. A normal civilian would be an emotional wreck, terrified of their surroundings and certainly would not be teasing a hitman, because as much as Shamal was a healer, he had also killed many.

Amami smirked, Shamal was good at hiding his emotions, but she was a seductress at heart, (not that she could so much 'seducing' at her current age,) as such, she was a master at the art of body language. Add in the fact Shamal had let down a little of his guard because she was only an incapacitated little girl, it was all too easy.

Shamal saw the smirk, it hardened his belief that Amami wasn't up to the civilian definitions of normal, but he mentally shrugged, who was he to pry into her business?

* * *

"Skull..." I hesitated, resolutely staring forward instead of looking in the direction of the baby Arcobaleno beside me. Currently, we were sat outside on one of the many benches placed in the garden, facing in the opposite direction to the large mansion behind us. Out of the very corner of my eye I saw his purple mane of hair shift slightly. Determined, I ploughed on; "it's been one week since I woke up and although my wounds haven't completely healed, I'm well enough to be up and about for the better part of the day..."I trailed off once more.

The silence was quickly broken by a somewhat downtrodden Skull, though there was a hint of genuine happiness for her in his voice.

"Don't worry Amami. I know what you're trying to say." Oh, Skull knew, he knew all too well. The fact was that, Amami had to go; she had family and friends who were probably worried sick about her. He was truly happy to be able to reunite her with all of her loved ones but that didn't help with his depression at the thought of his only precious person leaving him so soon.

Over the past week they had spent every conceivable waking hour by eachother's side, further deepening and solidifying the bond that had been created between the two the day he had saved her. He tried reminding himself that just because Amami was the only person he actually held a caring relationship with, the same didn't apply to her. She probably had many people she had known for much longer and cared much more for; the thought sent him into an even lower depression; it also scared him, the possibility she would go home and forget all about him was all too real in Skull's mind.

I eyed Skull as I turned around. His inner turmoil was clearly written on his face, or maybe it was just that, despite technically only spending one week with eachother, we had developed an irreversible connection, thus allowing me to easily decipher his facial expressions -even with him attempting to hide his emotions.

Without any forewarning Amami snatched Skull into her arms and placed his head at the crook of her neck. Skull stiffened marginally at the unexpected motion but quickly relaxed into her arms.

"It's alright Skull. Don't be sad because I'm leaving or you'll make me sad, if I'm sad I'm going to cry. You don't want that do you?" She threatened gently, knowing Skull would hate seeing her cry. Skull quickly moved his head backwards so he could worriedly look at Amami's face.

"Of course I don't want that." He replied seriously. She let out a small grin.

"Well then you're not allowed to be sad. We will talk to eachother all the time and visit whenever we can!" He smiled softly at her enthusiasm. "Now, you need to tell me what's wrong so we can fix it before I head home." Skull ducked his head under the weight of her knowing gaze; it was startling how easily she could tell when something was on his mind.

"I'm just... worried."

"Worried?"

"Yeah... What if, that when you leave, you forget about me?" He paused, but hurriedly continued before I had a chance to reply. "I mean, we don't even live in the same country! You'll go home, back to your friends and family, back to those who you've known your whole life." He began to speak slower and more strained, as if speaking his insecurities out loud was taking a physical toll on his body. "Eventually, you'll begin to try and forget the horrible memories of your torture, shoving them into the very back of your mind. Then slowly, you will start to become disinterested with me; contacting me less and less, making up random excuses so for until it's at the point where I'll be lucky to get a five minute phone-call once a month. Then, and then... You'll forget me too."

Amami widened her eyes, stunned by how detailed Skull was in his explanation. She had already realised he was upset by her leaving, but she didn't think he had thought it that far through; but that didn't mean she didn't understand, she herself was crestfallen at the fact she had to leave, also going into far too much details about the possibilities of Skull forgetting her in the busyness of his Mafia life.

Skull, discouraged by her silence, made to move out of her lap before he was stopped by the tightening of her arms.

"Skull." He looked directly at her, and Amami had to take a moment to fully grasp how _vulnerable_ Skull looked. How lonely he must've been before they met. Going as many years as he had without a single person by his side had to have been an incredibly hard thing to do. Amami personally didn't know if she would be able to handle it; sure, in her first life she had been all alone, but that was different. In her first life she was alone from the start, and as such, never had to feel the crushing pain of someone you love leaving you behind. Skull was forced to go through said pain when Luce had died and didn't even have anyone to help support him; the Arcobaleno had split up right after she died.

"Come live with me."

* * *

Skull's eyes widened.

"A-Are you serious?" Amami's eyes were solemn, but softened marginally when she heard the hope in his voice.

"Of course Skull. I want you to live with me in Japan." His purple orbs filled with happiness at her statement, but he hesitated.

"I don't think I can." Amami's face openly showcased her disappointment and sorrow. Skull hurriedly spoke once more, "Don't get me wrong! It's not because I don't want to! But Amami, I'm in the Mafia, more specifically the Carcassa Famiglia. The Carcassa Famiglia has a lot of enemies; if one of them were to find out where I live and found you…You know what would happen." Amami's replied with resigned sigh.

"I get it."

"But, that doesn't meant it can't be my home." Amami locked eyes with his, immediately catching on to what he was saying. She let out a rather foxy, lopsided grin.

"Home is where the heart is eh?"

He happily nodded in assent.

* * *

I almost collapsed in relief when I saw my house just down the street. I began to hobble as fast as I could towards my home. I must've startled Skull with my newfound burst of speed but presently, I don't care. I just want to see my family. I just want to taste Nana's heavenly bentos. To be whacked over the head by Kyoya for teasing him, with Tetsuya fluttering like a mother hen in the background. To work alongside Vinnie in his workshop. To discuss ways of improving the Mosca with Spanner. To work with Verde on his latest project.

I can tell they are all near. Don't ask me how but I can.

"Ah Amami! Slow down!" I won't. Instead I'll scream,

"Mama! Kyoya! Tetsuya! I'm home! I'm outside! Verde! Vinnie! Spanner!"

Before I could start hollering their names again, the door to my home almost flew off its hinges. They were a blur of motion as all my loved ones came barrelling down the street.

* * *

Nana stared at the rapidly cooling cup of tea on the table in front of her. She didn't bother glancing around at all the other people gathered in the living room, because she knew most attempts of conversation would be futile and she personally didn't want to speak to anyone anyway. Instead she thought deeply, about her precious daughter Amami. She had been missing for a total of three weeks; tear welled up in the corners of Nana's eyes.

To distract herself she began thinking about the friends her daughter had made. Amami didn't have a lot of friends, but the ones she did were unique and genuine. For that, Nana was incredibly proud of her daughter. Each one of the people in the room had all come to Nana when they had suspected something was wrong, each had helped her search high and low for her missing child. Even if they didn't show it visibly, Nana could tell that each one was just as worried as her.

'_Unlike Iemitsu.'_ She thought sourly. In the beginning Nana had rung Iemitsu multiple times a day, telling him of Amami's situation. But the same thing happened each time, he was too goddamned busy with work to listen to her properly and even just cut her off a few times. After a week Nana had given up, and a little part of the love she held for the man died slowly; she still loved her husband, but as the days without Amami nor a single concerned phonecall grew longer, her love dulled further.

Getting back on track before she started crying again at the absence of her only child, Nana let her thoughts once more assess the people that had called themselves Amami's friends.

Hibari Kyoya, he was one Nana already knew, along with Kusakabe Tetsuya. They were Amami's best friends and Nana would often see the two of them; sometimes they would visit the house and venture into either Amami's lab or room, and sometimes she would go out to them. Nana knew that hardly ever a day went by that the three didn't have some form of contact with eachother. To top it all off, Kyoya had made Amami into his 'pet.' Nana had inwardly squealed when Amami had told her, she totally shipped KyoyaXAmami. But then again she really, really liked that Tetsuya boy, and wouldn't rule him out as a potential suitor.

Moving on to the ones she didn't know, Lister Vincent (or Vincent Lister if you were going by the English way of saying names, Forname-Surname.) He was a relatively big man, not fat but muscled. If Nana wasn't married then she would've been sorely tempted to gaze at those muscles for an undetermined amount of time. He had told her he was a teacher of Amami's. And Nana hadn't been very shocked because Amami had already told her she was apprenticing a man who knew his way around a smithy.

Next was a young boy (probably around Kyoya's age,) named Spanner. He wore a blank face most of the time, but Nana knew he cared deeply for Amami, evidenced by the fact he had flown here from his home in England just to help with the search. How her daughter knew someone who lived in another country, Nana didn't know.

Lastly, and possibly the most interesting, was a baby named Verde. He was very mature and wore a lab coat so Nana assumed he was some type of prodigy. Amami had vaguely mentioned him a few times, never really going into detail about exactly who he was and what he did. But Nana didn't really care about that, even if what Verde did was dangerous Nana knew Amami would tell her of anything she deemed necessary.

Nana, while she had quite a few moments, was not as incredibly oblivious as many would think. Amami was probably the only other person to know of this, and they had a mutual understanding, born of the bottomless amount of trust they shared, that if Amami thought Nana needed to know, she would tell her, and anything she didn't was because it wasn't important or she didn't want Nana to worry needlessly. Nana was completely okay with it, because it meant that if anything important was going on, she would never be left in the dark like she was with Iemitsu. Nana wasn't stupid; she knew construction workers didn't usually leave for years on end, especially not to work in the North Pole with penguins. His idiotic lies made the rage in Nana's stomach simmer.

Nana sighed in an attempt to rid herself of her anger. Tears crept into her eyes once more as she looked around the room, eventually settling her gaze back on the untouched cup of cold tea.

"We-we" Her voice cracked, adamantly she continued. "We need to start looking for her again." All their eyes swivelled towards her, her voice having broken them from their own heavy thoughts. Vincent nodded solemnly, he stood up but made no move other than that.

"Where shall we search? We've looked under every pebble in Namimori, scoured the streets of Hermes and asked around in every other city within a ten mile radius." Verde's voice sliced through the room, raising the tension to almost palpable levels. Tears that had been so fiercely held back began dripping from Nana's eyes, his words were true and frankly there was nowhere left to look. Kyoya growled lowly,

"Then we do it all again." Verde nodded in response, but Nana's tears didn't stop; even when Vincent pulled her into a hug and patted her shoulder in an act of comfort.

"S-she'll be _*hic*_ a-alright won't she? _*sob*_ Amami's a s-strong girl. Right? Right?!" She stopped talking because the cries in the back of her throat became too hard to ignore and thus took away her ability to form words.

"Aye, right you are love." Vincent murmured softly into her ear, gently rubbing her back. Before he could say anything else, a voice Nana had been terrified she'd never hear again boomed throughout the room.

""Mama! Kyoya! Tetsuya! I'm home! I'm outside! Verde! Vinnie! Spanner!" Wide-eyed, Spanner spluttered,

"Is-is that..?" He didn't even finish his sentence before bolting out of the room with everyone else.

* * *

Kyoya bodily slammed into the door that was blocking his way outside. But Nana didn't even think about it as she ran the quickest she had ever been in her life. Outside, she saw her baby waddling towards her on a pair of crutches and Nana was overwhelmed with relief, she snatched her baby into her arms and refused to let go.

Amami and Nana laughed happily, tears of pure relief flowing from their eyes. Before Amami knew it she was being crushed by an extra pair of arms around her body, which she deduced to be Vincent's. Grinning she turned her head to Kyoya, Tetsuya, Verde and Spanner, gesturing with her head to join in. They did so hesitantly and a bit awkwardly but Amami still loved the moment.

Skull smiled at the heartwarming scene, elated that Amami had found the ones she loved and was so happy.

* * *

Ten whole minutes passed until Amami finally released her friends from the hug, and even then Nana still clung to her like a lifeline and vice versa.

"Amami! Oh Amami! What happened to you! You were gone for three weeks! I was so worried!" The daughter smiled softly at her still sobbing Mother.

"I'll tell you what happened later Mama but right now I need you to meet someone important." Nana stifled her cries and nodded. The males narrowed their eyes at her words, so focused they had been on Amami, none of them had noticed Skull lurking in the background.

Amami hobbled over to Skull, effectively bringing everyone's attention to his small figure. Verde raised an eyebrow.

"Everyone this is Skull, my saviour." Eyes widened at her statement. Nana immediately rushed towards him, and proceeded to hug the living daylights out of him.

"ThankyouThankyouThankyou! You're the reason my Amami has come home safe and relatively in one piece aren't you? I'm forever in your debt. Tell me anything you need and I'll do it the best I can." Skull grinned awkwardly but not unkindly at the woman.

"Ahaha, please Miss Sawada I don't need any reward."

"Actually Mama there is one thing, but we can discuss that later. For now, I just want to sleep in my bed."

* * *

After I woke up, I explained everything to everyone. Except for Nana who I censored out the more gory details, but I did tell Nana that I had been hurt very badly, and it was because of Iemitsu's work that it had happened. Even though I never actually said what Iemitsu's work actually was, Nana was completely furious at her husband for putting me in danger like that. When I told Nana about what Skull had done for the past three weeks and how deep a bond had been created between us as a result, the woman promptly named Skull an honorary member of the Sawada household.

"From now on Skull, my home is your home."

Kyoya hadn't taken the news of my torture very well, in fact none of them had. Kyoya and Tetsuya were so pissed that for the next two weeks, even the bravest delinquent didn't dare come close to breaking a rule because what would normally end in bruises and a few broken bones, would end in a coma. After leaving me alone to spend time with Nana, Vincent, Verde and Spanner for about a week, he demanded that I stay round his house for an indefinite amount of time. Nana had let me go with a smile on her face, she realised that Kyoya needed me around to soothe his emotions from when I had been kidnapped. It was almost animalistic at how possessive Kyoya was for roughly two weeks, but I didn't mind at all and stuck right by his side during the whole thing, we even slept in the same bed. Tetsuya visited every day without fail and even stayed over some nights.

Spanner allowed Verde to modify and improve his Akamo and then gifted it to me. Spanner felt more reassured of my safety if I had one of his battle-capable robots with me, and he told me if I was ever in serious trouble, the Akamo would notify both him and Verde. The lightening Arcobaleno also felt better that I had something to assist me in a fight. They both left after a week, but not without promising to talk very soon.

Vincent stayed a little while longer in the guest bedroom, it seemed like he and Nana really hit it off and had become great friends now that the situation wasn't so dire. They both made eachother happy and that in turn made me happy.

Skull had left only a couple days after we had arrived but he told her he would be back in about a month so it was okay.

* * *

"Kyoya you're squishing me." I was currently in Kyoya's kitchen, mixing a bowl of pancake batter. Kyoya had wrapped his arms around my waist and placed his head on my shoulder. He leaned his body into mine and pushed me into the counter.

To say I was surprised at this development was an understatement. Hibari Kyoya was not an affectionate person. However, apparently my three week absence changed his tune. Now, instead of just me being the one to initiate contact, Kyoya often reaches out to me aswell.

He grunted in response but didn't budge from his position. I rolled my eyes in fond exasperation. Sticking a finger into the batter, I smeared it across his nose. Annoyed, he backed away, but only enough that I had space to move, he was still very close.

Shuffling my slippers along the kitchen floor, I turned on the stove.

"Go sit at the table, breakfast will be ready soon." He looked at me with distrusting eyes.

"Will it be edible?" I was terrible at making most food, however, sweets and pastries were my forte, and I made some damn good pancake if I do say so myself.

I huffed,

"Yes, you ass." He smirked at me as he backed away to the traditional Japanese style table.

"When will Tetsuya arrive?" He sipped the chamomile tea I had placed where he usually sat.

"He just rung now, he's on his way." I hummed as I began flipping the pancakes, it wouldn't take long before they were all done.

"Pet."

"Yes Kyoya?"

"…You were gone and it hurt."

"I know and I'll be with you till it stops."

"Never let it happen again."

"Wouldn't dream of it Kyoya."

* * *

As I was setting the plate down on the table, Tetsuya entered the room. His face lit up when he saw my pancakes. I grinned at him and pointed towards the already set up space on the table.

We ate in silence, content to just enjoy one another's company.

When we finished I forced Kyoya to put all the plates in the dishwasher because I had done the cooking. Right now it's just me and Tetsuya, sat on opposite sides of the table.

"That was really delicious Amami, I didn't realise you could cook." I pouted, I wasn't _that_ bad at cooking was I?!

"Thanks I think."

"You know Kyoya plans on upping our training."

"Really? Balls."

"Language. It's to make up for the time I missed searching for you and to stop you from getting taken down so easily in the future."

"Hey, I resent that. I did not go down easily, I must've put at least half of them in a coma."

"I know and I'm proud of you, but next time it's going to be all of them."

"Well, when you put it that way I guess I really can't complain." He smiled at me, before he could say anything more Kyoya's voice sounded out from the kitchen area.

"We're leaving." Standing up, he manoeuvred around the table and held out a hand for me to grab.

"You still need help to move about right?"

"For long walks, yes." I grasped his hand in mine and he hoisted me up, a hand on the other side of my hip to keep me steady. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it." Tightening his grip on me, we began to walk out the room.

"And Amami?"

"Yes?"

"I missed you."

"You too Tet-chan."

* * *

Phew! Finally done! I do hope everyone liked this chapter, I worked hard on it. You know the way it goes, review if you felt like you particularly liked something or have any questions/comments/ect

BaiBai for now!


	6. The Rain Drowns

Ossu! How ya doin'? I thank all you smexalicious bitches for reading/reviewing/following ma story. I'm hoping you like the next chapter. Constructive criticism/questions are welcomed and praise makes me do the Sanji noodle move. Mellorine! A part of this chapter was inspired by Alice aquabld! Thanks!

**Disclaimer: I may not own it now but some day it shall be mine! MWUAHAHAHAHA-*coughs***

* * *

Chapter 5: The Rain Drowns

Loud knocking started on my bedroom door.

"Ami-chan! Vincent is here!" I shuffled once under my quilt. I heard the door opening and a too-damn-chipper-for-so-early-in-the-morning voice spoke, "Mou~ Ami-chan! Your teacher is here!" I grunted like an animal in response. "Maa! You still have a while since he came early but don't take too long okay?" I stuck my hand out of the covers and waved my hand to let her know I had heard. When the door closed, I let my hand flop down and fell back asleep; staying up all night in the lab was worth the lacklustre amount of sleep but that didn't mean I was entirely happy with such little rest.

* * *

Later, I awoke to soft giggles and loud guffaws coming from downstairs. Smiling to myself at how well Vinnie and Nana get along, I checked the time. It was about one o'clock.

Approximately thirty minutes later, I stepped out the shower and began to get dressed. Pulling on my black jeans, I sighed as I ran a hand over the thin, silvery scar than ran its length around the side of my hip. It started around the bottom of my hipbone, curved upwards slightly the closer it got to the back of the bone, where it stopped.

Personally, I didn't mind the scar, it was a way to encourage me to train, if I was stronger I wouldn't have ended up in that situation; everyone agreed, though that it didn't stop Kyoya from going into a ferocious rage over how some herbivores had 'marked' his Pet.

More than a few unlucky saps ended up with broken bones when they couldn't move out of the rampaging eleven year-old's way fast enough.

* * *

Slipping on a black tank top and a deep crimson hoodie left unzipped, I headed towards the kitchen. When I opened the door I came upon the scene of a pink-cheeked Nana and a grinning Scot.

"Bwahahaha! Seems you're finally up Lassie!"

"Ara, Ami-chan! I was wondering when you'd finally decide to wake up." Nana held a hand to her flushed cheeks. I would ask why she was blushing but I already had a fairly good idea, plus, I wanted to get to Hermes and start my weekly teaching session with Vinnie.

I winked at Nana before grabbing some pieces of leftover toast. She, in return, blushed harder.

* * *

Nana smiled as she waved to the shrinking figures of Vincent-san and Ami-chan. Turning around and shutting the front door behind her, the smile dropped, replaced with a frustrated frown. Nana sighed resignedly as she walked into the kitchen and plucked the home phone off the wall. She didn't want to ring Iemitsu, but annoyingly enough, the man had been calling her nonstop for the past couple days. Unfortunately, no matter how long she left it, the man would continue to ring until he heard either her or Amami's voice; her daughter didn't want to talk to him right now, neither did Nana, but it was her duty as a Mother to set the Father straight.

His phone picked up on the sixth ring.

"Nana! Don't you know I've been calling you for days!" Oh, she knew. Ignoring them hadn't been nearly as hard as they should've been. "I've called to check up on you, my sweet and my darling daughter Amami! I remember a little while ago you rung a few times, concerned about her. I trust everything is alright, well of course it is! There's no problem you couldn't solve with you-"

'_Yes, everything was alright. Unfortunately you're about three damn months too late to actually bother asking.' _Rage alighted in Sawada Nana's body as she continued to listen to the incoherent rambling of her husband.

"Iemitsu." She interrupted him.

"Yes sweetie?" She paused, narrowing her gaze at the phone. Opening her mouth, she _shrieked_

"Just what in the Hell do you think you're doing?!"

"Uh… checking if my two most special girls are okay?" His voice was a shaking squeak.

"Don't you think it's a bit Fucking Late to be asking that question?!" Nana never swore, in fact, she could count on one hand the amount of times she had ever swore in her life, but an anger so deep it _burnt_, smashed its way through her veins.

"Nana, sweetie-" She roared down the phone,

"Who the fuck said you could call me sweetie?! I don't want to deal with your romantic bullshit, so let's get straight to the point. Tell me just what the _fuck_ has kept you so busy these past three damn months!"

"Please calm-" Nana's anger bubbled and exploded like the hot, molten lava of a volcano.

"Calm down? Calm fucking down?! Do not fucking tell _me_ to _calm down!_ Right now Iemitsu, I am _pissed_, and I _suggest_ that you listen to me when I'm this angry. Now tell me exactly what you've been doing!"

" I-I told you already N-Nana. I do c-construction wo-" Nana's voice dropped to normal levels but didn't lose any of its scathing quality.

"You know what Iemitsu? I'm sick of this conversation and right now, I'm sick of you. Call me back when you grow some actual balls."

"I-I love you?" The phone was slammed down so hard it cracked.

* * *

I wiped my brow of sweat. Flopping down on the stone cold floor, I waited for Vinnie's verdict.

"Aye, ya pass. I'm proud of ya girl." I grinned at the Scot. The amount of effort I had put into making a knife that was up to Vinnie's standards was tremendous. The type of knife I made was a push dagger, a knife that is primarily used for stabbing enemies in the back before they even notice you.

Standing up, I walked over to him and waited. He gently placed the sharp object in my hands. As I began to admire my own work, he spoke,

"Amami… Your-uh mother, Nana, is she-uh… I mean!…" Vincent scratched the back of his neck nervously as his tan skin darkened further. I stared at him silently.

"Ah-I jus'… Nevermind." I tilted my head at his embarrassment. His nervousness at admitting his feelings was surprisingly cute.

"Regrettably, my Mother is married. Sorry, Vinnie." His chocolate-brown eyes softened and became downcast. My heart panged at his sadness. I reached out and gave him a firm hug.

He wrapped his arms around me and placed his chin on my head.

"Ah, it's.. She's a great woman, you know?"

I nodded. 

* * *

Yamamoto Takeshi was ashamed.

First, he had failed to protect his Mother. Watching, frozen as she was stabbed to death by a crazed man who foamed at the mouth. The only reason he hadn't died aswell was because they were fairly close to a busy street and a group of people had happened upon the scene.

The thought left Yamamoto disgusted by his own inability. If he had screamed, cried, yelled for help, the people would've gotten there earlier and saved his Mother. Even attacking the man would've stalled him long enough for them to arrive. Instead, he had remained still as his Mother was murdered brutally by a random, drug-addicted stranger.

_How Pathetic Are You?_

If that wasn't shameful enough, recently there had been another incident in which Yamamoto had the opportunity to save someone. A girl- who he thought to be his age, was attacked by a large group of shady-looking men. Once again, Yamamoto Takeshi had stiffened up and his body refused to budge.

_PleaseOhGodmoveMoveMOVE!_

His eyes widened in a complex mix of fear, awe, nausea and admiration. The ferocity of the fighting girl left him speechless. The blatantly dead bodies left in her wake made him feel sick but also amazed. She couldn't have been older than him but there was not an ounce of hesitation in her body.

_Why Can't I Be Like Her?_

Of course eventually she was defeated. One of the few remaining men had attacked her when she was tired with her back turned towards him. Yamamoto felt a despair not unfamiliar to the one when he had seen his Mother die. The men hadn't even noticed him, and yet, Yamamoto still couldn't find the courage within himself to go get help.

The girl was taken and Yamamoto hasn't seen her since.

He couldn't look his Father in the eye when he got home that night.

Yamamoto Takeshi was ashamed of how pathetic he truly was. Because even cowards could scream for help. 

* * *

"Amami, what are you doing?" I grinned maniacally at Spanner's image.

"What does it look like? Cooking obviously!" I cackled insanely as I went back to my masterpiece. "It's to send to my Papa! Ushishishishi!"

Spanner sweatdropped at the girl's crazy behaviour and creepy laugh. He mentally thanked the stars that the food wasn't for him while simultaneously pitying her Father. He had tried Amami's food before, the result was not pretty. He had passed out for a couple days. Spanner wondered how someone could be so horribly bad at making normal food, but excel at making pastries?

"And why exactly are you making him suffer?" Amami frowned as she brought the chopping knife down a little harder than needed; Spanner winced.

"He forgot Mama's birthday." Usually, Iemitsu at least sent some crappy card with an obviously photoshopped picture of him in some random place. This year, he hadn't. I could see the tension on Nana's face when I brought it up. Although I didn't bother to find out what exactly had transpired between the two since that was really Nana's business and she would've told me if she wanted me to know.

Anyways, I was angry at Iemitsu because even if they were in a big argument, that was no reason to ignore the fact it was his _wife's_ birthday. In my eyes, the fact that he had decided not to send anything at all, made him seem like a brat having a tantrum. If he had genuinely forgotten, then that was even worse, as that would mean he had pushed us so far out of his life, that he couldn't even remember the most basic details.

I understand that he was doing it so assassins wouldn't discover us, which he was doing a fairly shitty job of, considering I had been kidnapped. Even though, in all actuality, I was glad I had been because it meant I met Skull.

Akamo walked into the kitchen, carrying a few revolting-looking things that might've been alive a long time ago. Breaking out of my thoughts, I walked over to the baby robot and scooped up the foul stuff.

"Perfect!" I crowed happily. "You're just the best helper!"

"Amami, what is that?" I walked over to the bowl I decided to use and dumped all of the nasty crap into it, then mixed it together.

"Shishishi! I've got no idea!" Spanner's eyes widened in horror as I began to shape the mystery-meat into balls. When I had made about twenty, I put them into the pan to cook.

Eventually, I ended up with a deceivingly delicious looking dish of 'takoyaki.' I had used the juice from the mystery-meat as the sauce. Spanner's face was tinted green and he looked just about ready to puke. I snickered evilly as I packed up the food, securing it so it would be safe during its trip to Italy.

"That is disgusting." I gave Spanner a creepy grin.

"Kufufufu. Don't complain Spanner-chan, or you just might be assigned the role of taste-tester."

Spanner gulped. 

* * *

"What exactly, is Amami to you?"

Skull eyes stubbornly refused to look away from Verde's own unyielding orbs. Neither looked away, if they did, it would be seen a sign of weakness, which would undoubtedly be exploited. Without the slightest hint of hesitation in his voice, Skull replied,

"She is precious to me." Verde's blank gaze didn't even waver. It was something Skull had always hated about Verde, how even during the most sensitive of times, the Lightening Arcobaleno always managed to act the part of an emotionless drone, as though he didn't care for the situation. Which was untrue, because Skull knew Verde did care, very much; otherwise he wouldn't be in Skull's mansion, asking this question.

"And what of you? How do you feel about her?" Skull leaned forward intimidatingly as he voiced his question. Verde didn't flinch. Finally, after a long moment, he admitted,

"Very much the same way you do." The rising tension and hostility between the two dissipated instantly. Skull grinned towards his fellow Arcobaleno; who closed his eyes, letting his shoulders slump almost unnoticeably. Verde's face morphed into a mix of fondness, exasperation and care. It almost amazed Skull, never before had he seen Verde let his feelings about another show so honestly and openly on his face. He tilted his head at his green-haired companion, hesitating to say what was on his mind. Verde picked up it immediately.

"What?" He questioned Skull. Silence reigned for a moment.

"Does she remind you of Luce?" There, he had said it. He waited patiently for Verde's answer.

"A little." Verde confessed. "But in the same way, not at all." Skull nodded in reply, he very much understood what the scientist was talking about.

"I agree. When we met, the first thing I thought of was Luce, but I didn't think the two to be the same. Amami is different from everyone else. So was Luce but they're very much unlike eachother." Verde contemplated the words for a moment.

"Do you think we have found a new Sky?" Skull raised an eyebrow.

"Possibly. Has she told you about her heritage?" Here, Verde sighed.

"Yes. Her relation to the Young Lion of Vongola makes her a possible candidate." Skull's eyebrows scrunched up in worry. "Hopefully that situation won't come into being as there are currently three other available candidates, four if you count Xanxus."

"Even though after the cradle incident I doubt he's being considered anymore." Skull murmured. Verde nodded in assent.

"There is also the possibility that the three of them die before any are able to produce an heir." Skull frowned.

"If that happens, we won't be able to stop them from turning her into a Mafia Donna."

"Then we will have to just protect and support her to the best of our abilities."

"Agreed."

With that topic of conversation over, for the rest of the day, Skull and Verde talked. Filling eachother in on what they had been up to during all the years spent apart and their most recent escapades with a certain red-headed child.

It surprised them both at how easily they talked to one another, like old friends who hadn't seen one another for a long while. It was surprising because, Skull and Verde had never been friends. Only brought together for their shared curse and love for a woman long dead.

Nevertheless, both enjoyed their time together, there was a silent shift in the air that declared the two friends. 

* * *

"Yes! I have finally completed it! MWUAHAHAHA!" I began to dance around, waving my newly made object in the air.

"Pet. What are you doing?" I turned around to face my tonfa-wielding friend, Kusakabe right beside him.

"I have finally finished it. I am a genius!" I praised myself, because right now I totally deserved it. Excitedly, I started to dance once more. "Dow now now now, dow now now. Can't touch this!" Kusakabe chuckled at my failed attempt to replicate the instrument's beat. "Can't touch this! Oh-oh oh oh-oh-oh. Break it down. Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh oh-oh. Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh oh-oh. Stop! Hammer time!" Before I could sing any more, Kyo-chan whacked me over the head with one of his tonfa; smirking at my pout.

"It's just a skateboard." Kusakabe stated, trying to hide his smile at our antics. Kyoya nodded his head in agreement, I pouted harder in response. Kyoya walked behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, placing his chin on my shoulder.

"Well it's not just a skateboard." Sticking out my tongue at Tetsuya, I placed the skateboard on the floor. It was a sleek black, with dark green lining. Lifting my foot, I slammed it down on the far end of the skateboard. It flew upwards about twice my height. In the middle of the air it transformed into similarly coloured pistol which I caught in my hands. 

* * *

Hibari and Kusakabe stared in awe as Amami gave them a sharp, foxy grin. Hibari was the first to speak.

"Wao." He smirked sideways at his smart Pet. Hibari had never seen nor heard of such a thing before. She grinned harder in response and cocked the handle of her gun.

Kusakabe spluttered.

"Amami that's amazing! How did you do it?" She waved her free hand at the boy.

"A lot of hard work and late nights. You wouldn't understand the mechanics if I explained it to you." He nodded, knowing he wouldn't be able to follow the explanation behind it. "I can't wait to show Spanner and Verde. They're going to freak."

"Is a skateboard the only thing you can do this to?" Kusakabe questioned.

"Right now, I can only weaponise my computer and skateboard. But since I've now got the general ideal behind it, it'll be much easier to start doing this with other stuff." Hibari whistled in appreciation. He squeezed her waist a little as she let the gun fall to the ground, turning back into a skateboard as it did so.

"Is a gun the only weapon they'll turn in to?" He nuzzled her neck as he spoke.

"Nah, different things will be turned into different weapons." Kyoya smirked into her neck while Tetsuya raised an appreciative eyebrow.

"That's going to be a lot of work." She shrugged lightly, careful not to move too much due to the Skylark on her shoulder.

"Yeah but it'd be boring otherwise!" Kusakabe sweatdropped at her simple reasoning. 

* * *

Iemitsu stared at the box in his hands. He shook as he took realised who sent it.

"What's that kora?" Colonello asked as he tried to take a look at the box that the Young Lion of Vongola was currently holding. He had only come to CEDEF HQ see Lal before heading off back to Mafia Land but now his interest was piqued.

Lal gave an irritated glare at the blond; she had hoped he would just continue on his way out of the door. Glancing over to the box and the intense gaze it was being given by her boss, her curiosity also gave way.

Iemitsu looked up and promptly melted into a puddle of goo.

"It's from my beautiful, talented, amazing, incredible daughter! She sent her Daddy some takoyaki!" Lal Mirch rolled her eyes, annoyed she had wasted her time.

"Cool kora! Can I have some?" Iemitsu scowled at him.

"No! It's all mine!" Ripping open the box's lid, he scarfed down its contents. Colonello glared at him. Abruptly, Iemitsu turned a startling shade of purple. He collapsed, groaning into the ground. Lal Mirch panicked, thinking an enemy assassin had set Iemitsu up. Which shouldn't have been possible, the information that Iemitsu had a daughter, not a son, was a closely guarded secret of Vongola's.

"Colonello! Get some help! He must be poisoned!" When he made no move to turn away, she faced him and growled.

"Uh Lal, I think you're gonna want to see this kora." Her eyebrows furrowed in anger.

"How is it important right now! Iemitsu could be dying!" He shook his head and slipped a piece of paper into her hand.

"Trust me." Huffing, she lifted the paper to her face. On it in sprawled handwriting was,

_To Papa Iemitsu_

_I made you some takoyaki! In it are all my feelings about you. I hope you enjoy it!_

_Love, _

_Your daughter, Amami._

"And what of it Colonello?" She was quickly losing any remaining patience.

"Flip it over kora." She did, there was more writing on the other side.

_P.S. Unfortunately at the time I was making it, I was very pissed off with you. I don't know what pissed off food tastes like, but I imagine it's pretty shit. Happy food poisoning!_

Lal blinked, looking up at Colonello only to see a wide grin on her face. Simultaneously, they glanced between the oddly-coloured Iemitsu, the note and eachother. Then they burst out into peals of laughter.

Eventually, they calmed down. Lal shook her head mirthfully as she looked towards her blonde companion.

"I always knew that the fact he never bothered to contact his family would come back to bite him in the ass." Colonello grinned toothily.

"I think I like this girl kora." 

* * *

"Hahaha! Bow down to the great Skull-sama!" I raised an eyebrow at Skull. "And his amazing sidekick, Amami-chan!" I giggled and raised my hand in a peace-sign. Verde sighed from his spot within my arms. The broken men from another famaglia squeaked in fear of us three. Hurriedly, they got on their hands and knees as Skull had ordered.

Skull struck a hero pose at them, while I sat on the back of one particularly large man near me.

"Do you really need to go to such lengths?" Verde questioned, shaking his head at our antics. I huffed haughtily.

"Of course we do Verde. How else are they going to learn to respect our God-like presence?" I broke out into a grin at the replying snort, unable to keep up my snooty demeanour.

"It's what they get for trying to attack me in my own house." Actually, we were in Skull's garden. Beneath us were the cowering assassins of a rival Famaglia. Skull wasn't kidding when he said the Carcassa Famaglia had a lot of enemies, this sort of thing happened at least once a month. I just happened to be visiting Skull this time, along with Verde.

"P-Please have mercy! Skull-sama, Amami-sama, Verde-sama!" They did have a right to fear us, considering we kicked the ever-loving crap out of them in less than five minutes without breaking a sweat. I'm almost disappointed at how weak they were.

"The incredible Skull-sama will forgive you if you become his slaves for a month!" He laughed loudly. I snickered at their shocked expressions. It was well within Skull's rights to demand them as slaves and it's impossible for them to refuse, unless they decided it would be fun to be hunted down by the Vendice for breaking a Mafia Law. Attacking and losing a fight with a Mafioso in his home without dying left you in their debt. Most often, the repayment is death anyway. "And you first task is to clean my shoes!" He gave them a thumbs up. "With your tongue!" 

* * *

_It's Friday, Friday! Gotta get down on Friday. Looking forward to the weekend, weeke-_

I picked up my annoying alarm clock and threw it into the opposite wall; thankfully crushing it. Sitting up slowly, I groaned. Today would be my first day as a Junior-High student. I'm not looking forward to it at all. The only reason why I don't mind going is because Kyoya and Tetsuya will be there, though in a different year. 

* * *

Roughly thirty-five minutes later I was walking to school. I pulled my oversized, red hoodie over my head, masking my tired eyes and messy, bright-crimson hair. Grabbing my black and green skateboard, I headed outside.

Gravel crunched as I skated down the path. The air was chilly, even without the early-morning sun being blocked by any clouds. The closer I got to the school, more people came into sight. I assumed that they were all going to Namimori School as well. The most nervous ones looked roughly the same age as me, walking stiffly as they checked out their possible classmates.

I got a few strange looks, nobody could see my face after all; I probably seemed a bit creepy.

Not that I really cared.

Yawning, I decided that as soon as I sat down in the classroom, I was going to sleep. In all likelihood, I'd already know what they were teaching. My education in my life before had been terrible, but this time I had studied near obsessively. Nana wouldn't complain, I had slept through my younger years of schooling, it didn't affect my grades.

Just as I rolled through the school's gates, I heard a scream not too far left of me. Letting, out a happy grin, I changed course to the direction I knew I could find Kyo-chan. 

* * *

Nezu twitched. The girl wearing a large, red hoodie- which wasn't allowed as part of the school uniform!- had been sleeping all through his class! He was Dohachiro Nezu! The man who had graduated at the very top of a very prestigious university! Okay, that was a lie, but she didn't know that!

"The student over there! Wake up!" She didn't move. A few students began to giggle as they realised what she was doing.

Huffing, Nezu stomped to the back of the classroom where she sat.

Slamming a heavy book down on the desk right in front of her head, he yelled,

"How dare you be sleeping on the first day of school! In my class no less! You're not even wearing correct uniform! If you don't feel like doing the work, get out! Tell me your name delinquent; you can expect detention for the next month!"

Unhurried, she lifted her head to gaze at him boredly. Shrugging, she stood up, grabbed her bag and walked towards the door. The other students gasped as they realised what she was doing.

Red-faced, Nezu screeched.

"What do you think you're doing?!" She stopped just short of the door. Languidly, she turned her head towards him. Nezu hesitated when he locked his eyes with her deep, sea-blue ones; it was the only part of her face he could actually see due to the hoodie.

"Leaving." Her voice was devoid of any care, and held an almost mocking tone. It angered Nezu, but before he could do anything, she had already left.

"Come back here!" He ran after her. The rest of the class laughed at the sight of their tomato-coloured teacher tripping over his own feet as he tried to scramble after the rebellious girl.

Yamamoto Takeshi stared at the door in which the blue-eyed girl had left. He swore that he had seen those eyes somewhere before. 

* * *

Hibari Kyoya stared at the sleeping face of his Pet. Every day since the beginning of school, during lesson time she would come into the disciplinary office and nap on his sofa, (though she always woke up to have lunch with him and Tetsuya.) At first, Amami was being kicked out of all her classes, but most teachers quickly learned that if they didn't bother the sleeping girl, she wouldn't bother them and would score reasonably well on any test they gave.(She told him her laziness was the reason she didn't bother to ace them.)

The only teacher that continued to persist in waking her up was Dohachiro Nezu. Hibari knew that his Pet slept through the day because she spent afterschool with himself and Tetsuya and worked in her lab through the night. That herbivore Nezu was interrupting her much needed sleep (Even though he knew Amami wouldn't stay awake during school time even when she had a sufficient amount of rest.)

Hibari considered biting the herbivore to death, but then, he reasoned, if Nezu no longer bothered Amami she would have no reason to come to the disciplinary office at times other than lunch; which was unacceptable, because Hibari liked Amami's company more than anyone else. 

* * *

Nana raised a hand to her cheek.

"Oh they grow up so fast!" She looked at her newly-turned fourteen year-old daughter. She had grown into quite the woman. Well, not quite yet but close. Nana wasn't entirely sure where Amami got her red hair and curvaceous body from but didn't really care. Her daughter was beautiful and Nana would happily brag about that to anyone who would listen.

"I'm not quite grown up yet Mama." Amami smiled at her. While she wasn't particularly excited for a birthday party, it had been a while since she had last spoken face-to-face with Spanner or Skull but they'd both decided to come to Namimori for a couple weeks, starting today. "Are you going to tell me where we're going yet?"

"It's supposed to be a surprise!" Amami rolled her eyes in mock annoyance, Nana giggled.

A phone beeped endlessly. Twittering in excitement, Nana plucked it out of her pocket and chat in rapid speeds.

"The boys are waiting for us at the sushi restaurant! We should hurry!"

"We're going to eat sushi?" Nana clapped her hands over her mouth.

"Ah! I gave it away!" Amami giggled at her pouting Mother. Taking her hand, she pulled the sulking woman out of the door.

"Silly Mama, let's go. I want Fugu!" 

* * *

"The private table in the back corner." Yamamoto Takeshi smiled at his father before picking up a tray of sushi and heading off to the aforementioned table. Tsuyoshi's wince went unnoticed.

Glancing down, Takeshi was surprised to see Fugu as one of the dishes. Despite Tsuyoshi being licensed and completely able to turn the highly-poisonous dish edible, few people dared to risk it.

He wondered what type of person he would see once he lifted the drapes surrounding them, or judging by the amount of food, group of people. He doubted they had come to Takesushi before; very rarely did someone take one of the private tables because most customers liked to watch Tsuyoshi work. All of the regulars sat tended to sit near the booth. 

* * *

"Ami-chan would you like your presents before or after food?" Nana questioned for her side of the rectangular table, directly opposite me. To her right was Vincent and to her left was Spanner. On either side of me sat Kyoya and Tetsuya. In my lap was Verde and on my head was Skull.

"Before please Mama." Clapping her hands excitedly, Nana ordered everyone to go in clockwise order, meaning Tetsuya first.

He blushed when she opened his present. He had given her a knitted clothing, most notably a dark red scarf with a small A stitched on the end.

"Damn Tet-chan. Did you knit this yourself?" She whispered into his ear, because she knew he was still quite embarrassed by his feminine hobby. He gave her a shy nod. Grinning she kissed his cheek.

"Thanks!"

"oooh Ami-chan that scarf will look so good on you!"

For the next thirty minutes, Amami opened presents and everyone chatted about her gifts. From Vincent she received a month's supply of pocky. Nana surprisingly bought her a pair of rolling skates. Skull, Spanner and Verde had actually gotten her a joint present. Verde gave her all his notes on genetically-modifying plants; Spanner bought her a book about poisonous botany while Skull had actually gotten a lot of the plants in the book. Obviously Skull had dropped off the plants at Amami's house instead of bringing such dangerous plants to a restaurant.

Hibari's gift however, was quite different. 

* * *

I lifted the case off the small, black box Kyoya had given me. I wasn't even surprised by what I saw. Inside was a red with gold lining cat collar with my name on the nametag. I flipped it over and read,

'_Property of Hibari Kyoya.' _

I also noticed that to the left side of the dangling, rectangular nametag was the kanji for disciplinary Committee written in gold. I laughed as I put it on; the shocked faces everyone made were hilarious. I kissed the smirking Kyoya on the cheek in thanks.

Nana squealed in delight, Vincent let out a loud laugh. All of the other guys starred in horror.

"Oi! Who said you could mark Amami like that?" Skull angrily yelled from his perch. Verde pushed his glasses further up his nose. His eyes sharpened.

"I agree." Kusakabe just spluttered while Spanner glared at the Skylark. Hibari scoffed at them.

"She is my Pet and as such, I am allowed to show my claim on her in such a manner."

"You can't be serious! Amami don't just accept it!" I looked upwards and shrugged.

"I like it." They all faceplanted except Spanner. Instead he just shook his head and offered me a lollipop. I took it with a grin. 

* * *

"Ooohhh I can't wait! This is going to be my first time trying Fugu! I bet it's delicious~" Tetsuya frowned slightly.

"Why would you order such a dangerous fish?" Amami rolled her eyes at him.

"Because if so many people know how lethal it is but still order it, than it must be super delicious right? Enough for them to die for a taste right?" Kusakabe blinked.

"I never thought about it that way." Amami slapped him on the back.

"It's because you worry too much. Live a little will you?" Before Kusakabe could retort that actually, he wasn't a worrywart and did adventurous things all the time thank you very much, the server with their food walked into their little private space.

Amami grinned and the waved the boy over.

"Fugu!"

Takeshi's eyes widened. There, right in front of him was the girl. The one he could've saved. His arms trembled.

"Y-You." He whispered lowly. He dropped the Sushi with a clash.

Kyoya growled, he did _not_ like the way this herbivore was looking at his Pet. Everyone but Nana narrowed their eyes at him. She decided not to interfere and let Amami handle it.

"Yes me?" She replied calmly. Curious as to how Yamamoto could know her because despite being in the same classes, they had never actually met and he had never seen her face.

"You're _alive._" Verde's cold voice cut across the small space, freezing Yamamoto with its hostility.

"Explain what you mean." Yamamoto's eyes didn't move from Amami.

"Y-Years ago… I-I s-saw you b-being k-kidnapped! I-I d-didn't d-do a-a-any-" They all understood what he was saying before he finished. He had seen Amami getting kidnapped when she was nine, had the opportunity to help her but didn't.

Kyoya glared at the weakling. His voice, filled with disgust, spoke over the trembling one.

"What you're saying is you could've helped her, but was too cowardly to do so. Pathetic."

Yamamoto flinched but didn't deny the harsh words.

"No Hibari-san. What's he's saying is he's even worse than a coward. A coward would've cried for help from someone stronger. He however, is too useless to accomplish even that." Spanner's monotonous declaration hit right on the mark. Yamamoto bowed his head in acceptance.

Amami watched all of this with blank eyes. She saw how each member of her family was angered by the boy's cowardice. She wouldn't deny that she was also angry, nor did she care that he was supposed to be one of the future guardians. This world was no longer an anime; she didn't know him and refused to treat him differently because she had once admired him on a computer screen.

She didn't care about him. Harsh, but true. They didn't know eachother and were not family. Maybe one day they would be, but that was not today.

Yamamoto Takashi turned to the red-headed girl. He got into the seiza position and bowed deeply, hitting his head harshly on the floor.

"I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!" Skull tched in distaste. They boy had no right to ask for forgiveness but he wouldn't act against the boy because at least one good thing came from the kidnapping.

"I met Skull because of it so I don't care. Please bring us the food we ordered. What you originally brought is no longer edible." Yamamoto nodded and hurried out of their sights. He understood that the girl n longer cared about the kidnapping. But that didn't stop white-hot shame form blooming in his chest. He also understood that every single one of them at that table thought him to be pathetic, Amami herself thought him to be too pitiful to be bothered about. Yamamoto's chest and head pained him when he thought about it.

It only hurt because they were right. 

* * *

Omake- When I gave Kyo-chan his new tonfas

I grinned foxily at Kyo-chan's deceptively stoic visage; he'd been highly irritable for the past week because without any tonfa, he'd been unable to punish any rule-breakers properly. Being denied his favourite activity pissed him off to no end.

Behind my back I held a long, rectangular-shaped wooden box. In them contained a pair of tonfa I had sweated over for a whole week, making and remaking them to perfection.  
"Pet, hand them over." It was almost unnoticeable but he was becoming tenser by the second as he waited for me to unveil his newly made weapon.

Bringing the box out from behind me, I placed it on the short table in my room and slid it across to him. Tetsuya reached over to take off the lid and unveiled it inside to Kyoya's judging gaze. 

* * *

Hibari ran a critical eye over the tonfa he had pulled out of the box. They glimmered like quicksilver in the sunlight coming from the bedroom window; the edges were sharp to the point where Hibari knew he only had to clip an enemy on the side to cut skin. The tonfa itself was smooth and without imperfection, the handles were deep purple in colour.

To Hibari, they were beautiful.

Of course he wouldn't actually say that out loud.

"Have you discovered their secret yet?" Her grin was terrifyingly mischievous and Hibari loved it. Kusakabe on the other hand, pitied the poor, poor delinquents that would be on the receiving end of the combined power that is Kyoya's strength and Amami's weapons.

Hibari grasped the tonfa's handles as he stood up, marvelling at how they fit his frame so effortlessly. Feeling around, he noticed a little notch- hardly noticeable, on each tonfa. When pressed the ends of the tonfa slid open and out fell an obsidian spiked ball, glinting ominously on its hanging chain.

The smile Hibari Kyoya gave at that moment was not in any way friendly; it was the kind of smile that monsters idolised and hoped to be able to do one day.

"Thank you Pet." Now Hibari Kyoya was not the type of person to thank another, but this was his Pet, and therefore a special exception.

"You're welcome, Kyo-chan." 

* * *

Kusakabe paled when he saw the smile on Hibari's face, scrambling to his feet and out the door after he realised the bloodthirsty boy had already left in search of some prey.

"K-Kyo-san! P-Please wait!"

Amami cackled gleefully as she watched the two leave. They were both far out of earshot by the time she mused aloud,

"I wonder how long it takes for him to realise that there's more 'special features'?" 

* * *

Yo! Didja enjoy it? Hope so. Can't wait to do the next chappie. SQUEEEEEEE

There was quite abit of angst in this one. The ideas for it hit me like a heartattack. Some fluffly bits too. Tell me how ya felt about it, from Yamamoto's self-hate, to the new-found friendship of Verde and Skull, to Nana's fight with Iemitsu and his resulting food-poisoning! Oh and tell me about the omake! I was thinking about doing some about Amami's weeks with Skull and Shamal after her kidnapping or maybe her time with Xanxus in Italy... Hmmm decisions decisions.

Bye for now! Kolkolkolkolkol!


	7. You&Me

Sup! InsanityPushedMeOffTheEdge here! Thankyou to everyone who was concerned over poor Yamamoto. If it was an upsetting scene then it means I did it right! Even tho I felt bad for him too….

Apologies for any crappy spelling in this chapter and any previous/future ones! I don't have a beta and I'm usually too excited to post the next chapter to properly proofread it ;P Sorry!

Also, I sincerely apologise for the long-ass wait but I can't help it! I just take ages to write.

**Disclaimer: Despite wishing upon a star numerous times, I still do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn.**

* * *

Chapter 6: You&amp;Me Darling

It was hours after the final customer had left and Yamamoto Tsuyoshi had not stopped worrying about his son. Takeshi hadn't spoken a word to his father after an incident with dropped food. His face had remained sombre and somewhat impassive for the remainder of the day. Usually, Takeshi kept up a face of false cheer; Tsuyoshi didn't know which look sickened him more, the obviously fake happiness or the abundantly clear depression.

Despite all protests otherwise, Takeshi helped Tsuyoshi clean up the shop for the night. Afterwards he turned to Tsuyoshi with a look that churned his stomach.

* * *

"Can you teach me how to use the sword?" Tsuyoshi scrutinised his son for a moment.

"No." Takeshi reeled back in shock.

"B-but Dad… why?" Tsuyoshi, distressed, shook his head. He didn't want to tell Yamamoto the reasons why, Tsuyoshi knew it was information his fragile son might not be able to take.

"Tell me, Dad. " Takeshi whispered with a sharpness that told Tsuyoshi that Takeshi would not back down until he had heard Tsuyoshi's reasons.

"I can't" Tsuyoshi replied in a tone firm but worn.

Tsuyoshi made no move to leave or get closer to his child, sensing a divide between them.

"Is it because I'm weak?" Takeshi spoke, voice hardening and warping the longer he did so. "Is it because I'm not strong?! Because I'm a weak-willed coward?! A good-for-nothing who couldn't even protect himself, let alone others!" Takeshi screamed into the air, frustration boiling over as he continued to mock himself.

"It is none of those things!" Tsuyoshi screamed back at his son, desperate to end the words coming out of his son's mouth. "Strength has nothing to do with learning the sword! It's all about purpose!" The words flowed from his mouth before he could stop them. "You are not capable of being a skilled, honourable swordsman the way you are now. You have no goals, no determination, no loyalty. I refuse to teach someone so unstable!"

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Tsuyoshi immediately regretted his words. "I'm sorry." He spoke once more, quietly. "Goodnight Takeshi." He would not take back his words.

Shock, anger and resentment ran deep within Takeshi's body as he watched his dad's weary back. He felt like a scolded child, frustrated and unable to do anything about it. Quickly, it all drained from him as he thought over his father's words. Who in this world would he fight for? And who would fight for him?

No one.

He ran up into his room and slammed the door shut. Curling up into a ball, Takeshi cried into his knees. The feeling of solitude weighed down upon him.

* * *

As the weeks went by Yamamoto's emotional state continued to deteriorate. At first he started turning up late to baseball practices, which were irritating him anyway because no matter how hard he tried, his pitching and batting was getting worse. He became angrier and consumed himself in self-hate. He started fights with delinquents and eventually, even the local Yakuza.

On the surface he kept his plastic smile but started isolating himself from his father and his so-called friends. Who, he quickly noticed, only cared about the fact that Yamamoto was no longer the stellar baseball player they wanted him to be.

His nightmares about his Mother's death and Amami's kidnapping became longer and more frightening than before. It was so bad that Takeshi had bags under his eyes and was bordering on being an insomniac.

He thought about the two often, his Mother and Amami. He wondered what his Mother would say if she saw him in this sorry state. Would she hold him close and rock him back and forth like she did when he scraped his knee as a kid? Or would she scold him for letting himself become like this?

Amami too, he often gazed across the classroom to the sleeping figure of the girl he finally recognised after all those years. He daydreamed about what it would be like to be friends with her, a part of the tight-knit group of people who she had celebrated her birthday with.

He didn't doubt that Amami could've been a true friend. Unlike all the people who befriended him because of his looks or sports skills.

Amami wouldn't care about any of that; only looking at who he was as a person. He longed to become one of her precious people, but believed that he didn't deserve the chance to walk up to her and try to be friends.

He didn't think of himself as worthy.

So here he was, stood atop a small grassy hill near the edge of Namimori. A gun stolen from a Yakuza held firmly in his shaking grip.

He stared at the cold, black piece of metal that would easily take his life in a couple seconds. It was heavy in his hands and glinted harshly in the radiating Sun.

Slowly, he raised the lethal object. Placing the muzzle in his mouth, Takeshi took a deep breath. The metal grated against his teeth and he could taste a cool, metallic tang on his tongue. His finger trembled as he placed it on the trigger.

"What are you doing?" Startled, Takeshi ripped the gun from his mouth and turned to face the person behind him as he held it tight in his grip.

Amami's deep-sea eyes observed him calmly, almost frigid in their lack of emotion. Yamamoto Takeshi flinched as he stared into the blank eyes of the girl he had been yearning for to look at him with warmth and kindness.

Her sharp voice cut through his thoughts. "Don't you want to live?" He blinked, surprised he spoke at all. He shook his head.

"I-I don't think it's worth it." Amami was startled by the amount of agony and honesty in his tone.

"I don't understand." She spoke softly. "Life is always worth living."

Yamamoto became a little angry at that. She didn't understand, no one did.

"You just don't get it!" His voice cracked at little and the anger was replaced with desperation. "How it feels to lose someone that your whole life depended on. How it feels to be utterly worthless and alone! E-ever since _she_ died, I've felt like I was alone. And no matter what I do it just doesn't get better!" Yamamoto's face scrunched up in anguish. "And I _hate_ myself for just watching it happen. And over the years, I was _stupid_ enough to believe I was getting better about it, you know? Because those strangers at the funeral had told me that with enough time, I'd stop feeling the loss, I'd stop crying every time I thought about _her_. And they were kinda right, I can't cry anymore when I think about _her_. And a part of me has always hated that. But I thought it meant I was moving on."

He paused and had difficulty starting again. "But then I saw you being taken away. It all just came rushing back and I-I just feel like such a goddamned _idiot_. I don't want to feel like this. I hate it _so so _much."

Amami's gaze widened at his words, and she felt like the worst person in the world to have ignored his even once. He was suffering because of things out of his control and she had been selfish enough to disregard it. Mentally smacking herself, she swore to help him even if it killed her. It was the very least she could do.

Moving close, she wrapped her arms around him from behind and dragged them both to the ground. He tensed in her arms and after a long, _long_ while, he turned his head and sobbed dry tears into her shoulder.

At no point did she let him go.

* * *

I stretched my legs out on either side of Yamamoto's as he rested his head on my shoulder, exhausted.

"Yamamoto?" He turned his head towards my neck. "Do you wanna play a game?" He made a curious noise in the back of his throat.

"We'll have fun together, I promise. But it can be very dangerous sometimes; especially in the future." I could feel him frown into my neck.

"I'm not sure I understand..." He said in a quiet voice. Gently, I ran my hand through hin short, brown locks.

"It'll be a game that we play in real life. Us and our friends against enemy teams. And we'll have to fight, to protect eachother. People will get hurt, and some will die." He began to raise his head but thought better of it and laid it back on my shoulder. Twirling a lock of my hair, he asked,

"Do we have to play this game?" I sighed.

"I have to, yes. Because of forces outside my control. And the people I'm around get dragged into it too. So it's fine if you don't want to play, but that means…" I trailed off and he gripped my lock of hair. I was giving Yamamoto an option to not be apart of the dangers I would live in. Despite the fact that the mere idea of letting Yamamoto go was killing me inside. I'd become very, very attached in the few hours we'd spent hugging on the grass.

"I want to be your friend, even if that means having to play this game." He mumbled hesitantly. I broke out in a closed-eyed grin and nuzzled his cheek. Playfully, he tugged on my hair to get my attention.

"What is it called?" He questioned, distractedly flicking my hair around.

"The Mafia Game." I replied.

* * *

Amami lay back on the grassy hill and took a deep breath, closing her eyes. Takeshi quickly joined her, relaxing to the feel of the hot Sun on his skin, the cool breeze through his hair and the warm body beside him. He smiled when he felt her snuggle up into his side.

* * *

What must've been hours later, I woke up to a deep blue and orange coloured sky.

I smiled when I noticed what position Takeshi and I were in. In our sleep I had managed to curl up into a ball with Takeshi curled around me, his arms wrapped around my shoulder and middle.

Smiling again, I gave him a light poke to the cheek and moved my mouth close to his ear.  
"It's time to wake up Yama-chan" A few seconds passed before he registered what I said. Snapping his eyes open, he blushed when he noticed our position and how close my face was to his but gave a small grin.

"Morning Amami-chan." I rolled my eyes in amusement.

"More like night time, Yama-chan." His blush darkened but he made no move to move his arms from my body or his face away from mine.

"Yama-chan?" I winked cheekily.

"Would you prefer Take-chan? Or Shi-kun?"

"It's been a long time since anyone but my dad called me anything but by my last name so I prefer those to Yama-chan." He replied both bitterly and hopeful.

Taking a brief moment to relax against the slowly brightening and comfortable boy, I leaned up and gave Takeshi a quick peck on the cheek.

"It's time to go, our parents are probably worried." Nodding, the rosy-coloured teen languidly moved his limbs and stood.

After taking Takeshi's hand in mine, we began our trek back home.

"Amami-chan?"

"Yes Take-chan?" He turned his head towards me slightly.

"How did you know I was here?" I tilted her head upwards and gazed at the sky.

"Intuition?" I saw him raise an eyebrow but he fell silent once I turned my eyes towards him.

"Does… this mean we're friends now?" He voiced uncertainly. And it broke my heart to see him so vulnerable.

"Of course. Now and forever." I told him with an irrefutable determination. He simply nodded and smiled as he turned his head away.

* * *

The door creaked as Amami opened it. Ushering Takeshi in, she shut it quickly. Swiftly, she moved into the hallway and shoved her phone in Takeshi's hand before nudging him towards the direction of the kitchen.

"Call your father." Seeing his hesitant nod, she grabbed his hand. "It's okay. I'm staying with you."

He smiled.

Having a friend was so _amazing._

* * *

I gulped as the phone rung and tightened my grip on Amami's hand. Looking into her unwavering gaze for a few seconds, I brought the phone to my ear.

"Yes?! This is Yamamoto Tsuyoshi speaking? Have you found my son Takeshi?!" Guilt reared its head in me as I listened to Dad's panicked voice.

"Hey Dad it's me."

"Takeshi!" Relief flowed through the phone. "Where have you been! I was so worried!"

"I'm sorry Dad. I tried to do something stupid. Someone stopped me though, and I'm so glad she did. Can I tell you what happened tomorrow? This isn't the sort of thing to talk about over the phone." I heard him sigh.

"Are you safe Takeshi? Are you happy where you are right now?" Glancing over to Amami and then our entwined hands, I replied.

"Yeah I am."

"Then I'll see you tomorrow. I love you, Takeshi." He sounded so weary, I silently apologised for being the one who made him like that,

"I love you too."

* * *

I smiled at Take-chan's tired demeanour. Taking his hand, I lead him up the stairs and into my room. Gently, pushing him towards my bed.

"Sleep." He blushed when he realised we'd be sleeping together but otherwise didn't argue.

I threw him some of Tetsuya's spare pyjamas for when he slept round mine and turned away as I made quick work of my own clothes. Slipping on one of Kyoya's shirts, I waited for a couple of minutes before facing Takeshi once more.

Giving him a small smile, I nodded my head towards the bed. Hastily, he got in, swiftly joined by me. I felt him arms encircle my waist and snuggled into him.

His breathing evened out near immediately. I took a few more moments to enjoy his warmth before I too dropped off the edge of consciousness.

* * *

I awoke to the near unnoticeable sound of sobbing. Takeshi's arms around my waist were gone and it made me feel cold. Cracking an eye open, I noticed he had moved to the other side of my bed and was dry heaving into his forearm.

Blinking in worry, I shifted closer and hugged him. He let out a gasp, stiffening in my arms. Slowly, he moved his arms from his face and looked me in the eye. His eyes were red and panicked.

"Shh, it's alright. Everything is alright." His face scrunched up in a mixture of fright and relief. Pulling me even closer, he continued shake. I rubbed his back in comforting circles.

Some time later, Takeshi spoke, his voice muffled by my shoulder.

"I-I had a dream." His whole body flinched.

"It's okay." I soothed. "You don't have to tell me until you're ready okay? Why don't we get some rest." He gave a tiny nod and gripped me tighter.

"Promise you'll still be here when I wake up?" His voice was small and weak, like a lost child.

"I'll definitely be here. Promise." I watched him fall asleep and continued to watch long into the night.

* * *

When Yamamoto went home the next day he came upon a sleep-deprived and worried father. A pang of guilt ran through him at his dad's bedraggled state. He hugged his dad for what felt like hours and they leaned on eachother for support as they both cried into the other's arms.

Takeshi apologised profusely for being so foolish.

Tsuyoshi merely grinned at his _alive_ son; the euphoria he got from the knowledge his son was still breathing and healthy and _not dead_, was indescribable.

Amami stood outside, wanting to give the two space. She grinned at the sound of Tsuyoshi's joyful cries.

Patiently, she waited for the two to gather their bearings so she could go inside and introduce herself.

* * *

"Dad." Takeshi pulled away from his dad so they could face eachother, but kept a firm grip on his arms.

"Yes Son?" Tsuyoshi took a moment to wipe his eyes so he could properly look into his child's serious brown depths.

"Will you teach me how to use the sword?" Tsuyoshi raised an eyebrow as he searched Takeshi's eyes for a shred of doubt, fear, hesitance.

"Have you found a reason to learn?" Takeshi's eyes took on a steely glint of determination before melting into the happiest look Tsuyoshi's had seen in years.

A bright and most importantly _real_ smile broke out on Takeshi's face. Tsuyoshi was stunned.

'_who?'_

"I did Dad. I met someone who I can proudly call my friend. She's a little odd and has a mean type of humour." He admitted, hands twitching as he resisted the urge to rub the back of his head. "And I know that I'll follow her to the depths of Hell and back again. She saved my life Dad. I'll forever be in her debt."

Tsuyoshi's face slackened in surprise at the admission. Immediately he felt gratitude at whomever this mystery girl was, thanking her for being able to do what Tsuyoshi couldn't. But at the same time, he felt sorrow. He was teaching his son how to kill, and he had no doubt that both Takeshi and his mystery friend would have to.

"I'll teach you." He said without regret, despite the fact he had always wanted to keep his precious son away from the bloody life that always followed the picking up of a weapon.

If anything, Tsuyoshi could only be glad it was because Takeshi wanted to protect someone else, not to just kill meaninglessly.

* * *

Tsuyoshi slid a critical eye over the matching grins of the girl and his son. She was a small thing, rather curvaceous. Quite beautiful. He could already see Takeshi's crush forming and inwardly chuckled. He very much approved.

From what he could gather in the last half hour he had sat and chatted with her, she was… not kind per say, in fact she was actually quite self-serving. But at the same time not. She cared deeply for her family and friends and placed their needs above anyone else's. Conversely, she didn't have the slightest care about people that weren't apart the aforementioned group.

She had told him without hesitation, about how she first interacted with Takeshi. It was heartbreaking to say the least, listening to both Amami and Takeshi's sides of the story.

He was ashamed for being unable to help Takeshi when he needed it.

But now Amami cared for him, and Takeshi looked better than he had for years. Watching the two interact lightened Tsuyoshi's heart, it was obvious that they were already very close.

They also told him about The Mafia Game. It tore at Tsuyoshi's heart to know that the life he had fought so hard to run away from would consume his own son and his only friend.

The only thing he could do was teach them all he knew and hope it was enough.

He desperately hoped it was enough.

* * *

Omake: My Time In Italy With XanXan: A 'Little Prank'

"Now Amami-chan! Papa has to sign some boring paperwork but he will be much less bored if you come and help him!" Iemitsu said with a bright grin, as if he hadn't already asked this question twenty times before in the last half hour.

I pouted stubbornly and crossed my arms.

"No. I'm going to spend the day with Xanxan!"

"What?! Amami-chan why would you rather be with that ruffian than your own Papa!?" He dropped onto his knees in depression. I rolled my eyes.

"'Cause he's better" Iemitsu burst out into full-blown tears and grabbed the hem of my shirt. In the corner of my eye I saw Xanxan turning the corner into the hallway I was in as well as a few maid attendants dotted here and there. Looking down at the annoyance below me, a devilish thought popped into my head. Taking a deep breath, I screamed.

"Hentai! Pervert! Somebody help me!He's trying to take me away to his disgusting, creepy, kink lair!" I started crying loudly, as if my scream hadn't brought everyone's attention already. The maids gasped in horror and rushed to my side, pulling me away from Iemitsu, consoling me as I sobbed into their arms.

Xanxus on the other hand looked livid. His wine-red eyes rippled with anger. Knowing that Iemitsu was my Father did not help in any which way. Slowly, he raised one of his X-burners and pointed it at Iemitsu's face, who had already gone white with shock and terror. The maids gave him a few choice insults whilst Xanxus spoke only one word.

"Run."

Iemitsu looked towards me, disbelieving of his situation. I smirked at him over one maid's shoulder and gave a cheeky wink. He was frozen until he heard the click of Xanxus' gun. Then he sped off down the hallway in the blink of an eye.

Xanxus turned to me, anger still in his eyes but they softened considerably when he checked my body for possible injury. I gave him a wicked grin.

"I'm fine. Go ahead." Xanxus returned my grin with his own bloodthirsty twist of the lips before he headed in the same direction Iemitsu had only moments before.

* * *

"HHHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE"

So _that's _where Tsuna got his girly scream from.


End file.
